Eye Health Resources

Toric contact lenses for astigmatism: What are they?

What are Toric Lenses?

Lenses that correct vision two ways

Most contact lenses are what’s called spherical because, like a baseball or basketball, they have the same curve all the way around. Toric contact lenses are designed differently. Instead of one uniform curve, toric lenses have two—which corrects for the American football-like shape of the eye that people with astigmatism have. Still need more info? No problem, let’s dive a little deeper, starting with how astigmatism works.

To understand toric lenses, understand astigmatism

An illustrated side-view of an eye labeled with a few important parts shows how light focuses in a astigmatic eye

Most people’s eyes have corneas (the front part of the eye) and crystalline lenses that are spherical. This allows light from the world in front of you to focus on one point in the eye. If that one point is on the retina (the part of the eye that helps turn light into what you see) vision is usually nice and clear. When a person’s cornea or lens is shaped more like an American football than a sphere, the light focuses on two places instead of one, creating blurry or distorted vision at all distances. About one in three people have it, so it’s actually quite common.

What Does Toric Mean?

Toric describes the shape of the lens

The word toric describes a specific shape. It comes from the word torus, which is the shape of a doughnut. If you cut a little slice off the side of a donut, that slice is what’s called toric—it’s a piece of a torus and has two different curves perpendicular to each other. Toric contact lenses use this shape to correct astigmatism—there is a curve with a shallower arc, and a curve with a steeper arc.

How They Work

Toric contact lenses are customized to your eyes

Astigmatism comes in all shapes and sizes, so getting fit for toric lenses isn’t as straightforward as with spherical contact lenses—it might take some trial and error. Your Optician will prescribe lenses that correct your astigmatism by using two different parameters:

By cornea or lens shape

A teal oval with blue lines shows a representation of the curvatures of regular astigmatism

Since astigmatism means the cornea or lens is shaped more like an rugby ball rather than spherical, the steepness of the two curves of your eye plays an important role in how severe the astigmatism is, and how to correct it. On a contact lens prescription, one of those curves is labeled SPH, or sphere, and the other is CYL, or cylinder. Cylinder compensates for the degree of astigmatism you have.

By astigmatism orientation

A blue front-view illustration of an eye shows the orientation of oblique astigmatism

With spherical contact lenses, the orientation of the lens doesn’t matter, because it’s uniform all around. But lens orientation is a big deal when you’re correcting astigmatism because the two curves of the lens need to be in the right position for the lens to work. On a contact lens prescription, AXIS is a measurement of the orientation of your personal astigmatism. It’s always between 0 and 180 degrees. If you think of astigmatism as your cornea shaped more like a rugby ball than a basketball, AXIS measures the tilt of the rugby ball shape.

How do toric lenses stay in the right orientation?

Since blinking and movement typically rotates lenses on the eyes, it’s a feat of engineering to keep them in exactly the right orientation to correct astigmatism. Here are two ways it’s done today.

Traditional prism and peri-ballast

These types of lenses are designed to have a thicker area below the lower eyelid, which helps keep it oriented correctly. This style is influenced more by gravity, which may cause the lens to rotate out of place during some activities or movements.

With blink stabilization

ACUVUE® toric lenses utilize a EYELID STABILIZED® design, meaning it works with the eyelids to realign with every blink, helping provide clear, stable vision1, even during head tilts, blinks and extensive eye movements.

See more ACUVUE® eye-inspired innovations

Types of Lenses

Daily disposable, two-week and monthly contact lenses for astigmatism

Image of a smiling optician speaking to a woman with wavy hair

ACUVUE® contact lenses for astigmatism are worn during the day and taken out at night. Depending on the kind you get, you may wear them for one day, two weeks, or a month before disposing of them. Two-week and monthly lenses need to be cleaned and disinfected with multipurpose disinfecting solution every night.

Get started with toric lenses

The path to contact lenses always starts with one thing: an appointment with an Optician. They’re the ones who can give you a comprehensive eye exam and a contact lens exam to determine exactly what kind of lenses are right for you. Keep in mind, the process for finding the best lens for a person with astigmatism may be a bit more involved than for someone without astigmatism—the appointment may take a little more time or even a few visits to the office.

Why choose ACUVUE® for astigmatism?

Clear and stable vision1

No matter how active you may be, your vision with ACUVUE® contact lenses for astigmatism is clear and stable all day1 and can correct for both short-sightedness and long-sightedness.

EYELID STABILISED® design

For astigmatism, it's extremely important that your lenses stay in place for clear vision. ACUVUE® lenses realign with every blink2.

Great for active lifestyles

Your vision stays clear and stable1 as you run, jump and twist. And unlike glasses, there's no risk of breaking contact lenses.

Easy application and removal

Due to the contact lens' design, it can't be applied upside down like most other lenses for astigmatism2.

Built in UV protection#

ACUVUE® offers UV blocking# across its entire line of contact lenses, including those for astigmatism

Get started with ACUVUE® contact lenses

Try ACUVUE® for free*

Provide some basic information and get a contact lens free* trial

Find an Eye Care Professional

Use our locator tool to find an eye care professional who can fit you with ACUVUE® contact lenses

Related content

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Uncorrected astigmatism can present some challenges when encountering bright lights at night.

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Astigmatism correction: Can it be fixed or cured permanently?

Dive deeper into the different correction options available for astigmatism, including contact lenses and laser surgery.

Do toric contact lenses correct astigmatism?

Toric contact lenses are for people with an astigmatism correction—with or without the presence of additional refractive errors. Toric lenses can correct vision for people with either corneal astigmatism (caused by an irregularly shaped cornea) or lenticular astigmatism (caused by an irregularly shaped lens).

What level of astigmatism require a toric lens?

Torics are ideal for candidates with preexisting corneal astigmatism greater than 1 D.

How long can you wear toric contact lenses?

Daily and weekly astigmatism contact lenses are toric lenses that are made to only be worn for a short time. Daily lenses should be thrown away at the end of every day, and weekly options can generally be worn for 1 or 2 weeks.

* Please note professional eye examination and fitting fees may apply. GCC residents 18 or over only. One trial per person. Eligibility subject to Eye Care Professional approval. Participating Eye Care Professionals only. See link for full terms and conditions.

All ACUVUE® contact lenses have UV Blocking to help provide protection against transmission of harmful UV radiation to the cornea and into the eye. UV absorbing contact lenses are NOT substitutes for protective UV absorbing eyewear such as UV absorbing goggles or sunglasses because they do not completely cover the eye and surrounding area. You should continue to use UV absorbing eyewear as directed by your Eye Care Professional.

For more information on proper wear, care and safety, talk to your Eye Care Professional and read the Instructions for Use.

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Last updated 12/07/2024.