Contact lenses in the U.S. Army attack helicopter environment: an interim report

Recent technological advances have had a major impact on military aviation. While modern methods of providing visual information via electro-optics/visionics systems have extended the aviator's operational envelope, these devices are becoming increasingly incompatible with spectacle wear. Since close to 22 percent of Army aviators are ametropic (spectacle wearing), alternative means of providing a refractive error correction need to be investigated. One alternative being considered is the use of a contact lens correction. Since November 1988, the U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Laboratory (USAARL) has been conducting two AH-64 "Apache" contact lens research projects in order to develop a comprehensive database on contact lens wear in a variety of environments. A three-tier contact lens fitting system is being used: two different types of soft lenses and one rigid gas permeable (RGP) lens type. The wearing schedule is set at a maximum of 7 days/6 nights of extended lens wear. Fundamental operational data is being chronicled by unit flight surgeons. Standard clinical data is being used in ongoing command deliberations on future medical policy decisions concerning contact lens wear by Army aviators. Basic research information is being gathered in an effort to determine the fundamental physiological response of the cornea to the presence of a contact lens. Data through July 31, 1990 are presented. The subjective assessment of contact lens applications within the aviation community is universal acceptance. While current clinical data indicate some ocular health risk, flight safety risks are minimal. Establishment of long-term contact lens efficacy will likely depend on the ensuing analysis of physiological data.