Our outcomes of scleral contact lens application in irregular astigmatic eyes

Purpose: To investigate the effectiveness of scleral contact lenses in eyes with irregular astigmatism, particularly in cases of keratoconus. Material and Method : Our study covers the application of scleral contact lenses to patients with keratoconus and other causes of irregular astigmatism who applied to the Cornea and Contact Lens Unit of Akdeniz University Ophthalmology Clinic between January 2021 and February 2024. Our study was conducted in accordance with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki following the approval of the Ethics Committee of Akdeniz University Hospital with the decision numbered TBAEK-636. The data of the patients were evaluated retrospectively. It included the results of 159 eyes of 98 patients with scleral contact lenses. Visual acuity changes after scleral contact lens application and parameters that may affect visual acuity were evaluated. K1, K2, Kmax, Kort, visual acuity, corneal thickness at the thinnest point, previous ocular surgeries, and lens adaptability were evaluated before scleral contact lens application. Results: Scleral contact lenses have an important place in the treatment of irregular astigmatic eyes, especially keratoconus. Scleral contact lenses also significantly improve visual acuity in the treatment of irregular astigmatism caused by previous surgery such as CXL, CP or intrastromal ring. In the study in which we investigated visual acuity improvement, 2 different brands of lenses were tested; no superiority was found between the lenses. The diameters of the sclerla contact lenses used were not found to be related to visual acuity. In the gender distribution, male gender was found to be more prominent with 56.1%. Corneal thickness at the thinnest point was measured as minimum 189 and maximum 594 microns. Kmax was 58.44 in the right eye and 57.13 in the left eye.Compliance with scleral contact lenses was found to be 93.9%, representing a large proportion of our keratoconus patients with a rate of 98% Conclusion: Visual acuity increases significantly with scleral contact lenses applied in eyes with irregular astigmatism, especially keratoconus. Scleral contact lenses are lenses with a high rate of compliance after the application of scleral contact lenses. After the scleral contact lens application of the patients; It has been observed that the pre-existing ocular surface complaints have decreased significantly. Keywords: Keratoconus, Irregular Astigmatism, Scleral Contact Lens