Lenses Technology

Lenses in Swoop Eyecare

Swoop Eye Care partners with many specialty and local optical labs in the upper Midwest. Given our relationships, we can serve the needs of ALL our patients and those within our community from the simplest to the most complex optical prescriptions (prism, FL-41 tint, transitions, extra active transitions, slab-off, progressives, digital lenses, computer lenses, and much more). Our certified opticians help patients from start to finish!

Some of our lab partners are:

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What should you expect from Swoop Opticians?

Your eye doctor (optometrist or ophthalmologist) provides numerical values for a prescription; however, the prescription, most of the time, does not provide specific recommendations for types of lenses, and/or additional features that help in your everyday life (anti-reflective coating, blue-blocker, polished edges, photochromatic lenses, tints, etc.). Swoop opticians provide an individualized experience for your work environment, lifestyle requirements (read below), hobbies and unique qualities of your prescription that you have!

Why is it important to consider lifestyle requirements for your prescription glasses?

Our careers, lifestyle, hobbies, sports, and so many other activities require excellent vision. It is our job to help you toward the solution that makes sense for you!

Careers or jobs requiring hours of computer work - Check out our BookWorks office lenses!
Active hiker, athlete, or runner - Check out the Sports Progressive Lens Design!
Pilots, plumbers, electricians, and other professions must be able to read out of the BOTTOM and TOP of their lenses to be able to read - Check out the PilotWorks Lens Design!

Types of Lenses

Other Specialty Lenses

Myopia Management Benefits

What are the benefits?

The lens design reduces the progression of nearsightedness (myopia).

How does it work?

Optical scientists and researchers have used variable power lenses to account for asymmetries of the eye in the back of the eye, known as the retina. By doing so, light focuses on strategic points, which have been longitudinally studied to decrease the progression of nearsightedness.

Research Studies

Title: Effectiveness of a Spectacle Lens with a Specific Asymmetric Myopic Peripheral Defocus: 12-Month Results in a Spanish Population
- Conclusion: A group of 92 children were studied from the ages of 5-12 years of age.
  - Group 1 – 46 children wore traditional single vision lenses
  - Group 2 – 46 children wore myoless free-form technology lenses
  - Results: Treatment group 2 (myoless free form) notes a 39% decrease in axial length of the eye. With a decrease in axial length, this translates into reduced nearsightedness prescription or myopia.
- Source: https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/11/2/177

Safety Lenses

Safety lenses are ANSI (American National Standards Institute) approved lenses that have been tested for maximal protection for environments that are inherently more at risk for eye related injuries. There is often a marking on the lenses that indicate Z87/Z87+ or Z87.2/Z87.2+ or that the lenses adhere to protection standards regulated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

What is the difference between basic impact versus high impact?

Basic impact (Z87 or Z87.2) lenses are tested by involving a one-inch diameter steel ball and dropped from a height of 50 inches on the lens only. Lenses that resist cracking, chipping or breakage pass the compliance test.
High impact (Z87+/Z87.2+) lenses are tested with frame AND lenses together. A quarter inch diameter steel ball shorts out at a speed of 150 feet per second. If the lenses resist cracking, chipping, breakage AND the lenses stay within the frame, the test is considered a success and the product is classified as HIGH IMPACT resistant.

Shaw Lenses

What are Shaw lenses?

Shaw lenses are known as Iseikonic lenses. These particular lenses help correct aniseikonia. Aniseikonia is the perceptional difference in image size difference between the right and left eyes.

How do Shaw lenses work?

In Figure 1 - Non-Shaw lenses, the right eye sees the Swoop logo larger than the left eye.
In Figure 2 - Shaw lenses, the left eye now sees a clearer, less distorted, and the same size Swoop logo as the right eye.

Figure 1 - Non-Shaw Lenses

Figure 2 - Shaw Lenses

How does a Shaw lense allow to correct for aniseikonia (or image size difference between the right and left eyes)?

A computer-based algorithm uses measurements provided by your optometrist while working with your Swoop optician to customize lens thickness, curvature of the lenses, and varying power from center to peripheral parts of the lenses.
Check it out for yourself - SHAW!

Eye conditions or binocular vision dysfunctions treated with Shaw lenses?

Congenital anisometropia - Is when both eyes have different refractive powers that vary by almost three diopters.
Axial length changes secondary to retinal surgeries (retina detachment) - Is when one eye becomes longer due to the retina surgical procedure compared to the non-surgical eye.
Refractive induced aniseikonia from cataracts - Is when a cataract begins to shift the prescription of one eye compared to the other eye.
Maculopathy (macular pucker, cystoid macular edema, epiretinal membrane, macular schisis, central serous chorioretinopathy, macular holes, and many others) - Is when the back part of the eye is affected causing perceptual image size differences due to eye disease.
Amblyopia - Is when one eye is being ignored due to an eye turn, significant correction difference between the two eyes, and/or a combination of these factors.

What are the potential benefits of the Shaw lenses?