The cornea is the transparent tissue that covers the pupil of our eyes. Like the lens of a camera, its surface must be perfectly smooth in order to provide clear vision. When disease or injury causes the corneal surface to become irregular, the eye can no longer focus clearly, even with the strongest glasses. The corneas of patients who suffer from severe ocular surface disease become so exquisitely fragile that they are often unable to withstand the pressure of a blink or the briefest exposure to air—let alone the friction of a hard contact lens capable of restoring functional vision.

The Foundation’s Boston Scleral Lens offers a unique solution. Unlike conventional contact lenses, this device, about the size of a quarter, rests on the relatively insensitive white sclera of the eye and creates a space over the cornea that is filled with artificial tears. By filling in the surface irregularities of the cornea to restore vision, protecting it from exposure to air and the rubbing effects of blinking, and providing a reservoir of oxygen that allows the eye to heal, this cushion of fluid is responsible for the "miracle" experienced by our patients.