An optician is an individual who fits eyeglasses or contact lenses by filling a refractive prescription from an optometrist or ophthalmologist. They are able to translate and adapt ophthalmic prescriptions, dispense products, and work with accessories. There are several specialties within the field.
A US Navy optician adjusting a customer's glasses
Trial frame and lenses
"He Nose The Eyes". 1910 advertisement for Dr. Felix Gaudin, "Graduate Optician", New Orleans
Plate illustrating opticians' tools and the products of their work, including spectacles and a spyglass
Contact lenses, or simply contacts, are thin lenses placed directly on the surface of the eyes. Contact lenses are ocular prosthetic devices used by over 150 million people worldwide, and they can be worn to correct vision or for cosmetic or therapeutic reasons. In 2010, the worldwide market for contact lenses was estimated at $6.1 billion, while the US soft lens market was estimated at $2.1 billion. Multiple analysts estimated that the global market for contact lenses would reach $11.7 billion by 2015. As of 2010, the average age of contact lens wearers globally was 31 years old, and two-thirds of wearers were female.
A pair of contact lenses, positioned with the concave side facing upward
One-day disposable contact lenses with blue handling tint in blister-pack packaging
Artist's impression of Leonardo's method for neutralizing the refractive power of the cornea
Otto Wichterle (pictured) and Drahoslav Lím introduced modern soft hydrogel lenses in 1959.
