Disability glare increased by hydrogel lens wear

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Vision Science
• Optometry

Background:

• Decreased tolerance to glare is a frequent complaint among hydrogel contact lens wearers.
• The precise impact of hydrogel contact lenses on glare sensitivity has not been previously quantified.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify the visual disability induced by hydrogel contact lenses in relation to glare.
• To investigate how background luminance and glare source location affect this contact lens-induced glare disability.

Main Methods:

• Increment thresholds were measured as a function of background luminance and glare source location.
• Two conditions were tested: wearing hydrogel contact lens correction and wearing the spherical equivalent in a trial frame.

Main Results:

• A significant increase in glare-related visual disability was quantified with hydrogel contact lens wear.
• The effect was most pronounced at low background luminance levels.
• Glare disability increased as the angle between the glare source and target decreased, becoming negligible at high luminance levels.

Conclusions:

• Hydrogel contact lenses demonstrably worsen glare sensitivity and visual disability.
• The impact of contact lenses on glare is dependent on lighting conditions and the proximity of the glare source.
• Quantification of this effect provides valuable data for understanding contact lens visual performance.