International contact lens prescribing in 2011

* Article free to read on publisher website This is the 11th annual report of contact lens prescribing trends that we have prepared for Contact Lens Spectrum. Each year, we capture current modes of contact lens practice by asking practitioners in each market (optometrists, opticians or ophthalmologists, as appropriate) to provide information about the first 10 lens fits undertaken after receiving our paper or electronic survey form. In 2011, we captured information about 22,362 fits in 29 countries. Lens Wearer Demographics Women continue to represent the majority of patients attending for contact lens fitting (Table 1). Sixty-seven percent of fits were to women, with minimal variations in this measure between countries, ranging from 56 percent in Slovenia to 77 percent in Taiwan (Figure 1). For both sexes across all nations, the average age at fitting was 31.2 years, ranging from 23 years in Nepal to 37 years in Sweden. In a number of mature contact lens markets, the mean fitting age is edging toward 40 years. For example, in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Sweden, Australia and Denmark, the average age is greater than 35 years. The oldest patient reported this year was a 100-year-old man, who was fitted with extended-wear soft lenses.