Contact lenses are an excellent choice for nearly anyone who needs vision correction and wants an alternative to glasses. They offer great freedom and convenience for work, sports and social use.
Here are the basics factors the optometrist will consider when prescribing contact lenses to suit you and your lifestyle:
Contact Lens Shape:
The first choice when considering contact lenses is your eye shape. As everyone has a different eye shape we will first take keratometry readings ( eye shape measurements) to determine which shape contact lenses will ensure a suitable fitting contact lens that will stay stable and provide consistently clear vision.
Contact Lens Material:
The next consideration is which lens material will best satisfy your lifestyle requirements. The Optometrist will consider your lifestyle needs when making a recommendation.
- Soft lenses are made from gel-like, water-containing plastics called hydrogels. These lenses are very thin and soft and mould to the front surface of the eye.
- Silicone hydrogel lenses are an advanced type of soft contact lenses that resist deposits sticking to the lenses keeping them cleaner. They are more porous than regular hydrogel lenses allowing even more oxygen to reach the cornea. Introduced in 2002, silicone hydrogel contact lenses are now the most popular lenses. They are commonly prescribed for people who wear contact lenses for long periods and for people who wear contact lenses overnight.
- Gas permeable lenses — also called RGP lenses — are rigid contact lenses that are an extremely healthy option for daily use due to their high oxygen transmission and tear flow. As they are made from a rigid material they take a couple of weeks to be comfortable, but afterwards are comparable to the comfort of soft contact lenses.
Contact Lens Wearing Time:
They two types of contact lens wearing times are:
- Daily wear — must be removed nightly
- Extended wear — can be worn overnight, usually for seven days consecutively without removal. These lenses offer great convenience but require extra attention with regular eye health check ups to ensure eye health is not affected.
When To Replace Your Contact Lenses:
Even with proper care, contact lenses (especially soft contacts) should be replaced frequently to prevent the build-up of lens deposits and contamination that increase the risk of eye infections.
Soft lenses have these general classifications, based on how frequently they should be discarded:
Lens Replacement Frequency:
- Daily disposable lenses – Discarded after a single day of wear. As they are replaced daily they are a one of the most healthy contact lens wear options. They are very convenient for people who don’t wear contact lenses daily.
- Fortnightly Disposable lenses — Discarded every two weeks, or sooner
- Monthly Disposable lenses — Discarded monthly
Contact Lens Vision Designs:
Contact lenses can return your vision to normal for most eye conditions:
- Longsightedness ( Hyperopia)
- Shortsightedness ( Myopia)
- Astigmatism
- Presbyopia- (reduced reading focus )
More Contact Lens Features
Contacts for dry eyes. Do you have dry eyes, or are your current contacts uncomfortably dry? Certain soft contact lenses are specially made to reduce the risk of contact lens-related dry eye symptoms, and there are new lens designed specifically made to reduce dry eye symptoms.
Myopia control contacts. Special contact lenses have been developed to slow or stop the progression of short-sightedness ( myopia). If you are a suitable candidate then these lenses are great option to reduce the progression of myopia. They are an ideal choice for children who have myopia.
Contact Lens Wear and Care
Caring for your contact lenses — cleaning, disinfecting and storing them — is much easier than it used to be.
A few years ago, you would have needed several bottles of cleaning products, and perhaps enzyme tablets, for proper care. Today, most people can use “multipurpose” solutions — meaning that one product both cleans and disinfects, and is used for storage.
Of course you can avoid these lens care options altogether by wearing daily disposable contact lenses, as with these lenses you just dispose of them at the and of each day of wear- no maintenance required.
Book an appointment for a contact lens consultation:
