This presentation will look into the global trend of prescribing contact lens as well as the balance between oxygen and comfort during contact lens wear. The term “Shorter is better” becomes familiar when it comes to contact lens wearing modality and it is in fact the global trend of prescribing.

In Hong Kong, daily disposable silicone hydrogel contact lenses have become a prescribing trend among eye care professionals, which brings about two roots of success – health and comfort, to contact lens wearers. Shorter replacement schedule can eliminate unnecessary physiological allergic response to protein deposits. Moreover, daily disposable contact lenses can further prevent from allergy to disinfecting chemistry and contamination of improper cleaning procedures and contaminated regimen and accessories, resulted in lower risk of complications and infections.

Sufficient oxygen transmission is essential in healthy contact lens wear by reducing hypoxic conditions such as corneal edema, stromal neovascularization, limbal redness, microcysts and polymegethism. High oxygen transmissible silicone hydrogel material meets the need of corneal metabolism and prevents from the mentioned hypoxic signs clinically. However, solely focus on oxygen flow may bring comfort to brink because of the high modulus of silicone hydrogel material. As a result, a well balance of properties, including modulus, lubricity, oxygen delivery and UV protection are therefore paramount in prescribing silicone hydrogel contact lenses. Silicone hydrogel contact lenses with a balance of properties can provide the foundation for excellent lens performance on eye in the areas of subjective comfort, vision, and ocular physiology.