Taking Care of Your Contact Lenses

Contact lenses are a popular way to correct eyesight, whether short sighted, far sighted, presbyopia, or stigmatic eyes. Contact lenses can also be uses by people who have had eye surgery for cataracts. Disposable contact lenses have become very popular, though a lot of people use hard contact lenses and gas permeable lenses. Obviously with daily disposable lenses you have more freedom in the sense that you would not mind if you lost any, or if they became scratched. Hard and gas permeable lenses however require looking after. After your eye examination, the fitting and follow up care are important parts of contact lens usage to give maximum benefits of vision, appearance, comfort and tissue integrity.

How to look after your lenses

Try not to leave your lenses lying around after use and make sure you store them in the appropriate container with the cleaning solution. An atmosphere with dust and chemical fumes may damage your lenses if they are left uncovered.

Utmost hygiene must be maintained as contact lenses come into direct contact with your eyes. Always wash your hands before you handle your lenses.

Sterilisation is essential for soft lenses and must be done daily. Sterilisation is the cleaning of the lenses with the prescribed cleaning solution, which is sold along with the lenses.

If an old lens becomes uncomfortable, it may be developing deposits on the lens, scratches or nicks in the lens, or problems with the tears lubricating the surface of the lens. It varies from person to person with how long a lens will remain comfortable. Good care of the lenses will usually extend the life of the lens. Having to replace lenses frequently due to rapid protein deposit formation or other problems is a good reason to consider disposable lenses.