the history of contact lenses
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You may be surprised to learn that the Italian inventor, artist and scientist Leonardo da Vinci is credited with describing and sketching the first ideas for contact lenses in 1508! But it was more than 300 years later before contact lenses were actually fabricated and worn on the eye.
The Early Years - Glass Contact Lenses In 1827, English astronomer Sir John Herschel came up with the idea of making a mold of the wearer's eyes so contact lenses could be made to conform perfectly to the eye's surface. |
In the 1887, German glassblower F.A. Muller used Herschel's ideas to create the first known glass contact lens.
Shortly thereafter, Swiss physician A.E. Fick and Paris Optician Edouard Kalt are credited with fitting the first glass contact lenses to correct nearsightedness and farsightedness. These heavy glass lenses covered the entire front surface of the eye and could be tolerated for only a few hours of wear.
The Introduction of Hard Plastic Lenses
In 1936, New York Optometrist William Feinbloom introduced the use of plastic in contact lens manufacturing. Feinbloom's lenses had a central portion made of glass that covered the cornea and a peripheral band of plastic that covered the sclera.
In 1948, California optician Kevin Tuohy began manufacturing contact lenses made completely of plastic. His lenses were smaller in diameter than Feinbloom's lenses, but they still covered the entire cornea.
Later the same year, Oregon optometrist George Butterfield improved Tuoy's lens design, adding flatter peripheral curves to the lens so it more closely matched the shape of the cornea and would not pop off so easily.
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, hard plastic lenses were made smaller and thinner, evolving into hard lens designs that are still used today.
The Soft Contact Lens Revolution
Despite continual improvements in hard contact lens designs, these lenses remained quite difficult for many people to wear comfortably.
In the late 1950s, Czechoslovakian chemist Otto Wichterle and his assistant Dr. Drahoslav Lim began to experiment with methods to produce contact lenses using a soft, water-absorbing plastic called hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) that Dr. Lim created in 1945.
In 1961, using his son's erector set and parts from a bicycle, Dr. Wichterle created the prototype of a spin-casting machine and used it to produce the world's first soft contact lenses.
Dr. Wichterle's work later resulted in the introduction of the first commercially available soft contact lenses by Bausch & Lomb in 1971.
The first lenses commercially released to the public in 1971 were far from perfect.
The prescriptions were not exact and the edge widths were irregular. Bausch and Lomb was concerned and contacted the Southern California College of Optometry (then called The Los Angeles College of Optometry) at USC and asked if they could set up a small research project for two students to analyze and determine the variables occurring in these early released lenses. Dr. Richard Eisenberg was in his second year of school at the time and was one of the two students hired by Bausch and Lomb to analyze their lenses. The project lasted 18 months and many recommendations were made that helped the company refine and improve their Bausch and Lomb Soflens
In 1976, Dr. Eisenberg again was asked to be a clinical investigator for the first Soft Toric contact lens developed by the Hydrocurve Contact Lens Company. This lens was later FDA approved and enabled thousands of people with astigmatism to enjoy the comforts of a soft contact lens.
Over the next 30 years, Dr. Eisenberg served as an investigator for many companies whose lenses are currently fit worldwide today.
Because they are thinner and more comfortable than hard contact lenses, the introduction of soft lenses enabled thousands more people to become successful contact lens wearers. Today approximately 90% of contact lenses sold in the United States are soft lenses.
Shortly thereafter, Swiss physician A.E. Fick and Paris Optician Edouard Kalt are credited with fitting the first glass contact lenses to correct nearsightedness and farsightedness. These heavy glass lenses covered the entire front surface of the eye and could be tolerated for only a few hours of wear.
The Introduction of Hard Plastic Lenses
In 1936, New York Optometrist William Feinbloom introduced the use of plastic in contact lens manufacturing. Feinbloom's lenses had a central portion made of glass that covered the cornea and a peripheral band of plastic that covered the sclera.
In 1948, California optician Kevin Tuohy began manufacturing contact lenses made completely of plastic. His lenses were smaller in diameter than Feinbloom's lenses, but they still covered the entire cornea.
Later the same year, Oregon optometrist George Butterfield improved Tuoy's lens design, adding flatter peripheral curves to the lens so it more closely matched the shape of the cornea and would not pop off so easily.
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, hard plastic lenses were made smaller and thinner, evolving into hard lens designs that are still used today.
The Soft Contact Lens Revolution
Despite continual improvements in hard contact lens designs, these lenses remained quite difficult for many people to wear comfortably.
In the late 1950s, Czechoslovakian chemist Otto Wichterle and his assistant Dr. Drahoslav Lim began to experiment with methods to produce contact lenses using a soft, water-absorbing plastic called hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) that Dr. Lim created in 1945.
In 1961, using his son's erector set and parts from a bicycle, Dr. Wichterle created the prototype of a spin-casting machine and used it to produce the world's first soft contact lenses.
Dr. Wichterle's work later resulted in the introduction of the first commercially available soft contact lenses by Bausch & Lomb in 1971.
The first lenses commercially released to the public in 1971 were far from perfect.
The prescriptions were not exact and the edge widths were irregular. Bausch and Lomb was concerned and contacted the Southern California College of Optometry (then called The Los Angeles College of Optometry) at USC and asked if they could set up a small research project for two students to analyze and determine the variables occurring in these early released lenses. Dr. Richard Eisenberg was in his second year of school at the time and was one of the two students hired by Bausch and Lomb to analyze their lenses. The project lasted 18 months and many recommendations were made that helped the company refine and improve their Bausch and Lomb Soflens
In 1976, Dr. Eisenberg again was asked to be a clinical investigator for the first Soft Toric contact lens developed by the Hydrocurve Contact Lens Company. This lens was later FDA approved and enabled thousands of people with astigmatism to enjoy the comforts of a soft contact lens.
Over the next 30 years, Dr. Eisenberg served as an investigator for many companies whose lenses are currently fit worldwide today.
Because they are thinner and more comfortable than hard contact lenses, the introduction of soft lenses enabled thousands more people to become successful contact lens wearers. Today approximately 90% of contact lenses sold in the United States are soft lenses.
DR. EISENBERG IS A MEMBER OF THE CONTACT LENS SECTION OF THE AMERICAN OPTOMETRIC ASSOCIATION