Fits every scleral and specialty lens at the clinic, and sees each patient from the first map to the yearly check.
Specialty contact lenses in Shoreline
Contact lenses for eyes that are hard to fit
One optometrist fits every scleral lens, over several visits, for keratoconus, irregular corneas and eyes that glasses and soft lenses have not suited. Results vary, and we explain what to expect before you begin.
Who we fit
Lenses for eyes that need more than a standard fit
A scleral lens vaults over the front of the eye and rests on the white of the eye. Whether one suits you is decided at an exam, not on a web page.
Keratoconus
When the cornea thins and takes on a cone shape, glasses and soft lenses often cannot give a steady, clear picture. A scleral lens puts a smooth optical surface in front of the eye. We work alongside your cornea doctor if you have one.
Fitted from maps of the eye
Follow-up visits belong to the fitting
After a corneal procedure or injury
A cornea that has changed after a transplant, a refractive procedure or an injury can blur vision in ways glasses cannot correct. We fit the lens around the shape your eye has now.
Designed around the eye as it is today
Rechecked as the eye settles
Dry, sensitive eyes
Some people with dry or sensitive eyes cannot wear standard lenses comfortably. A scleral lens holds a layer of saline over the cornea, and some wearers find it more comfortable. It does not suit everyone, and the exam tells us whether it might suit you.
Compared with the lenses you wear now
Honest about who it does not suit
Complex prescriptions
Strong prescriptions and high astigmatism are hard to correct with ready-made lenses. We design toric and custom lenses from the measurements of your eye.
Toric, multifocal and custom designs
Trial lenses before anything is ordered
A stepped fitting
A fitting takes several visits
Each visit has one job, and each starts from what the last one showed. Many eyes need more than one round of changes before the lens is right.
- 01Visit one
Step 1: The exam and the maps
About 90 minutes. An eye health exam, then maps of the front of the eye and of the white of the eye, so the first lens starts close.
- 02Visit two
Step 2: The first lens
About an hour. You wear a trial lens while we check how it sits, how it moves and how you see through it, and we look at the space behind it.
- 03Visit three
Step 3: The adjustments
A shorter visit. Edge, height and curve are changed from what we saw. Some eyes need another round.
- 04Visit four
Step 4: Your lenses and a handling lesson
We hand you your own lenses and teach insertion, removal and cleaning until you can do it without us.
- 05The first months
Step 5: The first checks
Short visits at intervals we set with you, to check the eye and the fit, and to agree wearing time from how your eye responds.
- 06Every year
Step 6: The yearly check
A full exam and a look at the lenses, with a new set of maps and a copy of your prescription.
Fitting fee
What a fitting fee covers
A scleral fitting is more than a lens. The fitting fee pays for the doctor's time across the whole fitting, and we give you the amount in writing before your first visit.
The mapping
The scans and measurements at the first visit, and any repeat scans that the fit calls for.
Trial lenses
The diagnostic lenses you wear while we check how the fit sits and how you see.
Design changes
Each round of changes the doctor makes to the lens design after a visit.
The handling lesson
Teaching you to insert, remove and clean your lenses with confidence.
Fit checks
The follow-up visits that belong to the fitting, so the fit is checked and not assumed.
What it does not cover
The lenses themselves, cases and solutions, and your yearly eye exam are billed on their own.
Which parts a vision plan or medical insurance pays are on the fees page.
The exam room
Mapped before it is made
The first lens starts from your eye's own shape.
In the exam room on Meridian Avenue we scan the front of the eye and the white of the eye, then compare the maps with how the trial lens sits. The scans stay with your record, so each visit can be compared with the last.
What we measure
Maps of the front of the eye
A scan of the white of the eye
Imaging of the space behind the lens
Who fits your lenses
One optometrist and a team of three
Dr. Kannan sees every fitting patient. Her license is listed at the foot of every page, with the state's lookup.
Nahum Guevara
Ophthalmic assistant
Takes the maps and measurements, and teaches the handling lesson at the visit when you collect your lenses.
Shante Thorpe
Patient coordinator
Books your visits, checks your benefits before you come and answers questions about what a visit involves.
Ahmad Totah
Office manager
Keeps lens orders on track with the lab and gives you itemized receipts for your plan.
Questions
What patients ask before a first fitting
Is a scleral lens right for me?
That is decided at the exam, after we map the eye and look at how it behaves. Scleral lenses suit many hard-to-fit eyes and do not suit every eye, and results vary. We tell you plainly which it is.
How many visits will I need?
Most fittings take several visits, each with one job: the maps, the first lens, the adjustments and your handling lesson. How many rounds of changes your eye needs is not something we can know in advance.
Will my insurance pay for the fitting?
A vision plan often pays toward the exam, and some medical plans cover specialty lenses for certain eye conditions. We check your benefits before you come. How fees work explains which visit goes where.
Can I wear them all day?
Wearing time is built up and agreed with the doctor at your follow-up visits, from how your eye responds. We do not set a number of hours before we have seen your eye.
Can I take my prescription elsewhere?
Yes. Your prescription is yours. When your fitting is complete we give you a copy, and you can fill it anywhere that can make the lens.
What if my eye turns red or hurts?
Take the lens out and call us. If vision changes suddenly, or after an injury or a chemical splash, call us now or go to the nearest emergency room.
Book a fitting visit
Choose a time in our booking system, or call and we will find one with you. Bring the glasses and lenses you wear now.
Phone(206) 555-0111
Hours
- Monday – ThursdayToday
- 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- FridayToday
- 8 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- Saturday and SundayToday
- Closed