Why choose custom Ortho K?

Why you should choose customised Ortho K lenses for your Ortho K treatment.

It's easy to think that all Ortho K lenses are the same. They are not.

​There are two broad categories of Ortho K lenses: Standard Ortho K and Custom Ortho K.

Standard Ortho K is like buying a ready-made suit from a department store — pre-made in set sizes, simply select the closest size to fit and off you go. It might fit well enough but it's not perfect.

Custom Ortho K is like having a tailored suit made just for you — each one is made individually based on precise measurements of you. That means the perfect fit.

Standard Ortho K lenses are fitted by evaluating the most approximate fitting lens out of a set of pre-made trial lenses, to find the closest match for your prescription and eye shape. This method of Ortho K fitting does not take into account individual differences such as pupil size and personal vision needs, and more subtle variations in eye surface curvatures.

By designing each custom Ortho K lens individually for your eyes, using highly precise eye shape data from scans of your eye surface, you can enjoy the best possible result with your Ortho K vision treatment. Clear vision, more stable vision, more accurate treatment, better fit and comfort, and for children we can optimise the myopia control effect to more effectively slow down their progression.

Here at the Melbourne Myopia Clinic, I custom design each and every Ortho K lens for my patients with state-of-the-art lens design technology. OK lenses are very popular and common in China, and some of our patients are existing OK lens wearers from overseas looking for a new set of lenses after coming to Australia. After being refitted with our custom lenses, the difference between a standard Ortho K and a custom Ortho K lens becomes clear, as the sample image below illustrates:

A custom OK lens, made to the exact measurements of your eye, gives better results than a standard OK lens.

Same patient, different lenses. The right image above shows our new lens creating a symmetrical, well-centred treatment zone on the eye surface. The size of the red ring, which indicates the mid-peripheral myopic defocus zone — essential for good myopia control — is also much smaller and closer to the pupil (the black inner circle). Recent research suggests that a smaller Ortho K treatment zone like this is more beneficial for slowing myopia progression, and this can only be achieved with a fully customised lens design.

In contrast, the left image of the standard OK lens previously fitted in China shows an off-centre treatment zone, with the red ring much less defined, too large in size and not in-line with the pupil. While this may give reasonable vision in terms of seeing, it is not the ideal result for controlling myopia progression.

If you are considering Ortho K treatment for your child, or if your child is currently wearing standard Ortho K lenses fitted in Australia or overseas, see us for expertly designed custom OK lenses for best results and to slow down your child's short-sightedness progression as much as possible.