Synergeyes Contacts for Dry Eye

[rubyslippers]

Update: 3 years later and still doing very, very well. Synergeyes are my "cure". I still have very severe dry eye, but am symptom free when the Synergeyes are in.

[calli66]

Hi,
I live near you and was wondering which doctor you went to for Synergeyes---especially since you mentioned that it took lots of visits and extra fitting time by the eye doctor. This is a quality I look for in eye doctors because I don't see well and have trouble getting a good prescription during an refraction exam.

thanks,
Calli

[greenandbrowneyes]

new synergeyes user

i have mild dry eye and have been wearing the synergeyes for about 2 weeks now. i notice, amazingly, that i just don't seem to need to put drops in my eyes and they feel good all day. i actually forget about them! i can tolerate these lenses for about 12 hours now. my problem seems to be with light sensitivity....it seems to come and go and i am assuming that this is something to get used to. i did notice a $50 coupon if you google synergeyes coupons for certain types of the synergeyes. unfortunately for me, i have no vision insurance. i have the synergeyes ps (post surgery)-- i am approx. 15 years post rk and have not realized how poor my vision was, until i used these lenses. they are amazing. however, the fitting has taken many many hours and visits and although the cost is fairly high, if the dr. takes time and does is properly, i can see why. i understand some medical plans treat certain vision disorders as a medical situation, so you may want to check with your dr.

[greenandbrowneyes]

new synergeye user

i have mild dry eye and have been wearing the synergeyes for about 2 weeks now. i notice, amazingly, that i just don't seem to need to put drops in my eyes and they feel good all day. i actually forget about them! i can tolerate these lenses for about 12 hours now. my problem seems to be with light sensitivity....it seems to come and go and i am assuming that this is something to get used to. i did notice a $50 coupon if you google synergeyes coupons for certain types of the synergeyes. unfortunately for me, i have no vision insurance. i have the synergeyes ps (post surgery)-- i am approx. 15 years post rk and have not realized how poor my vision was, until i used these lenses. they are amazing. however, the fitting has taken many many hours and visits and although the cost is fairly high, if the dr. takes time and does is properly, i can see why.

[Lily10]

Which insurance covers synergeyes??

I just discovered about synergeyes through these threads and I'm really interested to go in for an appointment to see if I'm a candidate. I have severe dry eye in 1 eye, which recently have been more comfortable after getting cautery. I haven't been to the the optometrist since developing my dry eye and before that I always just paid out of pocket.

The contact fitting and the lens itself for Synergeyes are SO expensive that I think vision insurance at this time is a good idea. For those who use Synergeyes, which vision insurance do you have that covered them so I know which one is better to get?? Any help is greatly appreciated, thanks!

[rubyslippers]

Update

Still doing beautifully. Cannot wear my glasses more than 1-2 hours with the dry eye getting too painful. No pain, irritation, etc. with my synergeyes at all. They are truly my miracle.

[sazy123]

Well my eyes are just too dry for any type of contact. The synergies- didnt fit my cornea and couldnt find a fit- the ones i tried actualy caused an abrasion because they werent the right fit. But other than that i could still feel somewhat a dryness- and that day my eyes werent at worst because my throat was bad.

I did take home some soclear- as the optomotrist said most people found those better for dry eye than synergies because they dont have the soft lense to absorb (which i was surprised at because i had heard reports of these being better for some with dry eye).

The soclear felt comfortable but again too dry.

Just gonna give up on any sort of contact.

[hkgcomet]

Heard lots of normal people wearing contacts long time got "dry eye"...

Seldom hear dry eye people wearing contacts for a benefit.

Would it just reduce irritation at first, but at last you will got severe dry eye even worse?

I am afraid of putting anything even artitifical eye drops into the eye.
Lots of news of contact wearer getting amoeba going into the eye causing near blindness.

Contact may lead to better looking as same time, but only if you can wear for whole day of 16 hours.

It would be better if things are done with an eye doctor.

[kitty]

Any contraindications to Synergeyes?

Can someone tell me if there is a particular type of patient that cannot or should not wear Synergeyes?

[Stanza]

My interpretation of RS's condition---corneal pain, roughness, and irritation are greatly reduced under the protection of the lens, which seems to out-weigh any negative effect of dryness.

agree with this. Also it's the case that we keep seeing that one thing doesn't fit-all, but might do, so we will try with such hope in mind.

I love getting these updates, RS! I'm glad this is working for you.

[calli66]

Possibly the rigid center part of the lens acts a a reservoir for moisture. Perhaps the limited amount of tears that a person has are enough to hydrate the white part of the eye and the soft lens skirt. And, the fact that only a small portion of the lens requires hydration, reduces the need for as much moisture and reduces the evaporation of moisture from the eye (the cornea) and the lens itself. Just speculating here.

My interpretation of RS's condition---corneal pain, roughness, and irritation are greatly reduced under the protection of the lens, which seems to out-weigh any negative effect of dryness. And the severity of myopia/astigmatism (if I remember correctly) meant that glasses/moisture glasses weren't a good solution. (apologies to RS if I'm misinterpreting here)

I wore soft lenses for about 5 years when my eyes measured about 2 mm on the Shirmer's test, so I know it's possible to wear even soft lenses with dry eye. While sorely tempted to investigate the Syergeyes for myself, I think I should leave well enough alone, since my problem is more with inflammation (from Sjogren's). I think any kind of contact lens would start up that vicious cycle of irritation/inflammation again--for me, anyway.

Calli

[20/20_Hindsight]

Kitty,

I was wondering the same thing, as I had seen that PDF file before.

For me, a soft contact dries out within 15 minutes and is stuck to my eyeball. How on earth could the soft skirt stay supple in a dry eye?

I have read on at least one other forum of a user(s) with dry eye saying they were not able to tolerate the Synergeyes lens in their eyes for long, due to dryness.

Maybe RubySlippers has a distinct type of dry eye making this possible?

[kitty]

This discussion about the Synergeyes being dry eye friendly is interesting. Their package insert specifically states they should not be used in people with disorders of the cornea or eyelids and they should not be used in people with severe DES. I wonder if the insert came out before people with DES tried them? I think I will discuss with my doc at my annual visit.
http://www.synergeyes.com/practition...A_Lens_New.pdf

[rubyslippers]

It has been over a month since I last posted on this and wanted to wait and see awhile longer. I also have 2 friends/relatives with dry eye who have been in these contacts 3-5 weeks now. The verdict is that they are still everything I had hoped. With them on I virtually have hardly any dry eye and even on a bad day, simple Refresh drops about every 8 hours completely takes away the small amount of discomfort when the contacts are in. With the contacts out, my dry eye is moderate to severe (my doctor's description). As promised they hold the moisture to my eye. My SIL and my friend have had the same results. Both are basically dry eye free and one of them has not been able to do outdoor activities for 3 years previous due to such a light sensitivity that even the darkest sunglasses were no relief. Both are wearing them all day and both had initial problems removing but within 3 days had it down. It is not a problem at all for me. You just have to learn the feel of what works and it becomes second nature to be able to grab them in the right place to remove them. They are holding up beautifully and yesterday my doctor said he could see no wear at all on mine where the skirt meets the RGP. My vision is the best it has ever been. The bifocal part is quite good. I only use reading glasses for phone books and medicine bottles these days.

My dry eye is in no way a thing of the past. I am still faithfully doing my Eye Spa technique, taking my flaxseed oil, and protecting my eyes when outdoors. I am still drinking lots of water as that is a certain factor for me.
I could just kiss my doctor for hanging in there and coming up with this solution for me. All I have to do is go without them for a couple of hours and the pain and discomfort remind me of the weeks and months of suffering I used to have.

[rubyslippers]

Today my doctor was able to explain the physiology of why the Synergeyes work for dry eye. A bare eye is exposed to the drying affects of the air and the heat in the air. A contact protects the eye and can prevent that cool, menthol feeling. Problem with soft contacts is that they are literally sponges and because of the large surface this sponge covers, many eyes cannot keep up with it. A gas permeable rigid contact does not absorb the moisture, but it creates a tiny area all around the outside edge that when the tears do flow over, gets missed. It is like a little crack that the moisture flows over but not into. The Synergeyes solves both problems. Less of the soft contact material lessens the sponge effect, but it fills in the crack where the gas perms leave off allowing for more even moisture distribution. Because it slightly holds the gas perm off the eye there is less friction. That friction exacerbates the soreness caused by dry eye. Because friction and absorption are lessened while more of the eye is protectively covered, one can expect the results I have. He can no longer see any sign of dry eye, although I can feel it a tiny amount in one eye (not even uncomfortable, just noticeable at times). Add the contacts to use of a humidifier, faithful eyelid scrubs, and twice daily use of flax seed oil, I have had a good result. I also no longer put anything in my eye that contains preservatives. I use Unisol to rinse my contacts out of the case instead of the solution and only Refresh drops.

When I do not have the contacts in my eye, I am good for about an hour. Then the burning and cool feeling begin. If I go another hour, I move into the pain sensation and brightness sensitivity. The instant I put the contacts on my eyes all symptoms nearly completely disappear because moisture is now being held to my eye and my eyes protected from the air.

It was interesting to hear the explanation of why these contacts feel like such a miracle to me. He figured that if I had to go a couple of days without them, I might well be back in a bad way.