Small lenses pop, drift and collect dust at exactly the wrong moments. A scleral lens is the opposite temperament: big, tucked under the lids, locked on a fluid cushion. For athletes with keratoconus or post-surgical corneas it isn’t just stable correction — it’s often the only kind that survives a game.
They’re engineered rigid-gas-permeable materials under a cushioning fluid layer — impacts are absorbed remarkably well, and any direct eye hit earns a check regardless of lens.
Open water and lenses don’t mix — plan removal, or ask us about prescription goggles over Ortho-K for water athletes.
Usually the same lens — the fitting already prizes stability. We fine-tune wear schedules around training.
Yes, for higher-risk sports. Contact lenses, sclerals included, do not protect the eye from injury, so wear sports goggles with polycarbonate (very impact-resistant plastic) lenses for sports such as basketball, racquetball, squash and fielding in baseball, and a helmet with an attached polycarbonate face guard or mask for hockey and batting. The right protective eyewear can prevent 9 out of 10 sports-related eye injuries. Wear it over your scleral lenses, and if you do take a hit to the eye, take the lens out and get checked the same day: call 310-828-2010.
Only with your surgeon's go-ahead and the right protection. After a transplant, the eye needs guarding: avoid rubbing or pressing on it, wear glasses or a shield to protect it, and ask your surgeon when you can return to normal activities, sports included. Regular glasses and contact lenses do not protect against sports injuries, so play in polycarbonate sports eyewear. A scleral lens can give a grafted eye sharp, stable vision for play; wear the eyewear over it, and get any blow to the eye checked the same day.
