1. At what strength of prescription do you start using the lenses with the flat, plano front and what are the advantages?

2. At what strength of prescription do you start using or start recommending myodiscs and what are the advantages?

3. What are the strongest Rx lenses you ever made? - Tom

Cara

I'd probably start using a flat front surface around a -9.00. I believe this type of decision is really based on personal preference - the patient's and the optician's.

The strongest lenses I've made were made last week - -27.00. The patient requested just CR39, no edge treatments! They looked... thick!

Glasseslover

Regarding a plano base curve, we begin using that at whatever rx the computer tells us to. Depending on what type of material is used, the plano base can start as low as -5.00 and cylinder is also a factor. With older lab equipment you have some wiggle room on BC, but with the new stuff when you punch in the rx & it will tell you what BC should be used (although there can be manual override).

As a dispensing optician as opposed to a lab optician, in the type of offices in which I've worked I've never dealt with myodiscs. They are extremely rare and are considered a low vision aid rather than the type of glasses we work with.

Finally, the highest I've ever personally measured for, ordered, and then dispensed was -12.50 and very, very few of those. High myopia is nowhere near as prevalent as the posters on net bulletin boards think it is or wish it were. This week I did a -8.75 with -1.00 of cyl, & that's the highest in a long time and the first one over -6.00 in a long time.