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Increasing numbers of contact lens wearers
Gerald
Increasing
E. Lowther,
CID, PhD,
Numbers
For a number of years we heard and read articles of how the contact lens market was not in growth or in decline. The number of wearers was not increasing, and the companies were not doing so well. Have you heard that recently? A report by Wesley-Jessen (U.S. Soft Contact Lens Industry Update) indicates that there are now (at the end of 1996) 24.4 million soft lens wearers in the United States, which is an increase of 1.1 million wearers over the 1995 numbers. About half of the soft lens wearers are on a disposable or frequent replacement schedule, with
Co-editor
of Contact
the average wearer purchasing 13.8 lenses per year. The total number of contact lens wearers is estimated at 30.6 million. Their data indicate that there was not a significant increase in numbers of wearers from 1987 through 1992, but there has been a steady growth since that time (Figure I). Another interesting statistic is that for the first time the manufacturers’ sales of soft lenses surpassed $1 billion, increasing 11% in 1 year. The greatest increases have been in disposable, planned replacement, and specialty lenses.
ICLC, Vol. 24, July/August, 1997 0 Elsevier Science Inc. 1997 655 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10010
Lens Wearers
Such an improvement in the number of lens wearers is good news for everyone in the field, and this has occurred without any major breakthrough in the field. Let’s hope that a higher Dk hydrogel and a safe extended wear lens will become reality and further improve the numbers of successful wearers. With the increased concern over managed care and thirdparty payment plans, contact lens fitting and care that often falls outside these plans will be areas in which practitioners can keep some control over their practices.
0892-8967/97/$17.00 PII 50892-8967(97)00054-O
TOTAL LENS WEARERS
c
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
#+*
- SOFT LENS WEARERS
1993
1994
1995
1996
YEAR
UC,
Vol. 24, July/August
1997
117
Increasing
E. Lowther,
CID, PhD,
Numbers
For a number of years we heard and read articles of how the contact lens market was not in growth or in decline. The number of wearers was not increasing, and the companies were not doing so well. Have you heard that recently? A report by Wesley-Jessen (U.S. Soft Contact Lens Industry Update) indicates that there are now (at the end of 1996) 24.4 million soft lens wearers in the United States, which is an increase of 1.1 million wearers over the 1995 numbers. About half of the soft lens wearers are on a disposable or frequent replacement schedule, with
Co-editor
of Contact
the average wearer purchasing 13.8 lenses per year. The total number of contact lens wearers is estimated at 30.6 million. Their data indicate that there was not a significant increase in numbers of wearers from 1987 through 1992, but there has been a steady growth since that time (Figure I). Another interesting statistic is that for the first time the manufacturers’ sales of soft lenses surpassed $1 billion, increasing 11% in 1 year. The greatest increases have been in disposable, planned replacement, and specialty lenses.
ICLC, Vol. 24, July/August, 1997 0 Elsevier Science Inc. 1997 655 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10010
Lens Wearers
Such an improvement in the number of lens wearers is good news for everyone in the field, and this has occurred without any major breakthrough in the field. Let’s hope that a higher Dk hydrogel and a safe extended wear lens will become reality and further improve the numbers of successful wearers. With the increased concern over managed care and thirdparty payment plans, contact lens fitting and care that often falls outside these plans will be areas in which practitioners can keep some control over their practices.
0892-8967/97/$17.00 PII 50892-8967(97)00054-O
TOTAL LENS WEARERS
c
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
#+*
- SOFT LENS WEARERS
1993
1994
1995
1996
YEAR
UC,
Vol. 24, July/August
1997
117