FDA Approved

Contact lenses are miraculous pieces of plastic that allow you to see without glasses. In most cases, contact lenses are used as a substitute for glasses, allowing you to dispense with them. Contact lenses may also be used to treat certain eye diseases or may be used for cosmetic purposes to change the apparent color of your eyes.

Successful contact-lens wear requires a "partnership" between the fitter,  that is, an ophthalmologist, an optometrist, or possibly an optician, and you, the wearer.

• The fitter must first decide if your eyes are healthy enough to wear contact lenses. If so, the fitter then fits the correct lenses for your eyes and your needs and teaches you how to use and care for them.
• You must follow the instructions, care for, and wear the lenses correctly, and return as required for routine and emergency care.

Soft lenses and rigid gas permeable (RGP) lenses are the main lenses available. Each has specific indications as well as a specific wear and care regimen. The older hard (PMMA) lenses are rarely used today and have risks similar to RGP lenses. There are larger scleral lenses available for special eye conditions.

Contact lenses are mainly used to avoid having to wear glasses in conditions such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism or to avoid the use of bifocals (multifocal lenses).

They may also be used to treat other conditions. Keratoconus is a condition in which the surface of the eye has a very irregular shape (astigmatism). When glasses no longer provide adequate vision, contact lenses are used. 

1. Some lenses are meant for daily wear. With daily wear soft lenses, you wear the lenses for one day and then discard them. This allows one to dispense with solutions, cleaning, and disinfection of the lenses. It allows intermittent wear such as weekend or occasional wear, as desired. Most soft lenses and some RGP lenses are worn for a day and then removed, cleaned, and disinfected each night. Soft lenses are usually replaced on a regular basis, which varies from one week to one month to three months to one year. RGP lenses may last for years with regular care.
2. Extended wear lenses, usually soft, are worn overnight for one week and then replaced every one to two weeks. Trying to extend the wear of lenses beyond the recommended replacement schedule is a false economy and an invitation to potential disaster.
3. Overnight wear decreases the amount of oxygen available to the eye and increases the (rare) chance of infection by fourfold. Because of this, some practitioners do not recommend extended wear of contact lenses. Newer lenses may be safer.

The most common reasons for contact-lens wearers to seek care is irritation of the eyes, redness, or blurred vision. These can be caused by the lenses wearing out or warping, a change in the eyes requiring new lenses, poor fitting of the lenses, poor care of the lenses, or sensitivity to solutions. These relatively minor inconveniences must be evaluated because they may signal the onset of corneal ulcers and deeper infection.

Makeup may get under a lens and cause irritation or a greasy film on the lens, making it difficult to see clearly. Sometimes polishing in the office will be necessary to remove this film. 

It is important to keep in mind that any of these eye complaints may occur and have nothing to do with the contact lenses and may be signs of other unrelated eye conditions such as infections, cataracts, or glaucoma. It may be necessary to see your eye-care professional for the correct diagnosis and treatment.