Silicone Hydrogel Fitting Trends in an Optometric Institution

Samantha Hornberger OD, Susan Kovacich OD, FAAO, Neil A. Pence OD, FAAO Jason Gray
Indiana University, School of Optometry

Purpose: To compare the saturation of silicone hydrogel contact lenses in the Indiana University
School of Optometry (IUSO) clinic system from the same quarter 2005 and 2006 to determine the
growth of this lens material over time.

Methods: Data of all soft contact lens supply orders in IUSO clinics from the 1st Quarter (1stQ) of both 2005 and 2006 was compiled. The total number of orders placed for all soft contact lens materials was compared with the orders for silicone hydrogel materials and those orders were then examined by lens design. Finally, the saturation of silicone hydrogel orders and their percent growth from 1stQ 2005 to 1stQ 2006 in the IUSO clinic system was compared to nationwide saturation and growth.

Results: There were 866 soft lens orders during 1stQ 2005 and 1126 soft lens orders during 1stQ
2006. Upon analysis, of 1stQ 2005 orders, 309(35.7%) were silicone hydrogel with the remaining 557(64.3%) comprised of other soft lens materials. Comparing this data to 1stQ 2006 when 627(55.7%) orders placed were silicone hydrogel and 499(44.3%) of orders were other soft lens
materials, there was 30.0% growth in total soft lens orders with 102.9% growth in silicone hydrogel.
Of the 309 1stQ 2005 silicone hydrogel orders, 305(98.7%) were single vision and 5(1.3%) were
toric. To compare, of the 627 1stQ 2006 orders, 529(84.4%) were single vision, 96(15.3%) were toric and 2(0.3%) were multifocal. This relates to a 73.4% growth in the number of single vision silicone hydrogel orders and 2300% growth in the number of toric silicone hydrogel orders. The growth is probably attributable to both the release of new lens designs and to an overall increased awareness of the benefits of silicone hydrogel lenses.

Conclusion: There was a clear increase in the prescribing of silicone hydrogel materials in the
IUSO clinics. Anecdotal data suggests silicone hydrogel fits nationwide may total approximately 40-
45% for 2006, an increase from the HPR reported 29% silicone hydrogel fits in 2005. Academic
settings, such as the IUSO clinics, may be early adapters with this emerging trend.