THE YEAR 2024 WAS ONE FOR THE HISTORY BOOKS! We started the year with grand plans of peace and civility and ended the year questioning our sanity with the turbulent presidential election. We collectively decided to become experts in everything thanks to social media. Conspiracy theories ran rampant, and brain rot became the new disease of the day (and the word of the year, according to the Oxford University Press). We navigated a roller coaster of emotions, from the thrill of a new artificial intelligence (AI) overlord to the despair of another global shortage (toilet paper, of all things). We mastered the art of returning to work and became experts in quiet quitting—all at the same time.

Turning our attention from popular events of 2024 to eye care, we should be reminded about major innovations in contact lenses—and there have been many milestones along the way. The first contact lens (ironically a scleral lens) in the late 1800s. The first corneal lens (1940s). The first soft lens (1970s). Disposable soft lenses (1990s). And all along the way, improvements in contact lens materials (polymers), as well as advanced designs, made these innovations possible.

Silicone hydrogel materials have optimized the contact lens wearing experience for millions of our patients. They have made patients safer and, arguably, more comfortable. Now, they have had a significant milestone birthday, having been available now for a quarter of a century! Because of their tremendous impact in the field of contact lenses, the contact lens “event of the year” for 2024 is the 25th anniversary of silicone hydrogel materials. Congratulations to the scientists and clinicians who brought us this milestone event.

We at Contact Lens Spectrum are quite enthusiastic for the 2025 calendar year, and wish to thank all our readers, sponsors, patients, and colleagues as we celebrate this new year!