Astigmatism is a common condition that means the cornea or lens of the eye is more curved in one direction.  A common analogy is how the shape of a football is more curved in one direction than the other.  This does not mean your eye looks like a football :)  It simply means the prescription of the lens needing to correct your vision has different powers to correct those different curves.  Astigmatism blurs our vision at both distance and near.     

Most patients have some amount of astigmatism in their prescription.  Small amounts of astigmatism usually do not require a special type of contact lens.  But if you have a moderate or large amount of astigmatism then you will need a type of contact lens called toric lenses.  

Toric = astigmatism correcting contact lenses.  These have the two powers needed to correct the different curves of the eye in them and a system to keep those powers in the correct orientation.  This works by having thicker and thinner areas in the lens to interact with your eyelid blinks to keep the lens positioned in the correct axis.  If a toric lens rotates too much - it will cause a blurring of your vision.  Fitting toric contact lenses requires finding a lens that is comfortable and stable on the eye that doesn't rotate excessively.  

There are many different brands of toric contact lenses and most people with astigmatism can still wear contact lenses successfully.