AIM: To record aberrations with a corneal topographic device on the anterior surface of the cornea at different time-points prior to wearing and following discontinued use of rigid gas permeable (RGP) contact lenses. The effect of wearing RGP on the anterior surface of the cornea was discussed to provide guidance for clinical refractive error correction.METHODS: The study objects were 24 eyes from 24 patients. All patients underwent identical examination procedures prior to lens use, as well as afterwards, including slit-lamp examination, non-contact tonometer measurement, computer optometry and corneal curvature measurement, subjective refraction test, and corneal topography analysis. The patients wore contact lenses everyday for 1 month and then discontinued. Corneal topographies were recorded at certain time points of 30 minutes, 1 day, 3, 7 and 14 days following use.RESULTS: Total corneal aberration at each time point following discontinued use of RGP contact lenses was less than the time point prior to use. Detailed results were as follows:root mean square (RMS) (pre)=(1.438±0.328)μm, RMS (30 minutes)=(1.076±0.355)μm, RMS (1 day)=(1.362±0.402)μm, RMS (3 days)=(1.373±0.398)μm, RMS (7 days)=(1.387±0.415)μm, and RMS (14 days)=(1.430±0.423)μm. Results showed that at 30 minutes after discontinued use of RGP contact lenses, almost all 2^nd- and 3^rd-order aberrations change. Quadrafoil Z10 and spherical Z12 of the 4^th-order were also changed. Alterations to Z5, Z6, and Z12 at 1 day after discontinued use were significant differences compared with the time period prior to RGP use:Z5 and Z6 decreased, and Z12 increased slightly. Z5 and Z6 remained decreased at 3 days after discontinued use, but Z9 and Z10 continued to increase and Z12 returned to levels prior to RGP use. At 14 days after discontinued use, all aberrations were not significantly different from the values prior to use.CONCLUSION: The use RGP contact lenses greatly reduced total aberration of the anterior surface of the cornea. Changes to 2^nd- and 3^rd-order aberrations (including Z3, Z4, Z5, Z6, Z7, and Z8) were more significant. Following discontinued use of RGP contact lenses, the majority of lower order aberrations returned to original levels in a short period of time. During this process, a transient higher order aberration appeared, but all changes disappeared within 14 days after discontinued use of RGP contact lenses.