Making and Fitting Prosthetic Eyes

This chapter discusses the manufacture and fitting of custom-made (poly)methyl methacrylate (PMMA) prosthetic eyes. It describes at least two different techniques for each stage of prosthetic eye construction and approaches the subject from a broad perspective that is respectful of the many methods that ocular prosthetists have developed to suit their own personal styles. The goal is not to advocate for one method over another but to enable discussion about how best to achieve excellence in prosthetic eye manufacture. The manufacture of glass eyes which were common before the advent of PMMA eyes in the 1940s (see Chap. 11) is not described even though one or two European ocular prosthetists still make and fit glass eyes claiming greater wearing comfort due to their superior wetting properties.