Contact lenses are medical devices that can have a serious impact on the health of your eyes. To ensure safety and comfort, it is essential that you follow proper cleaning and storage procedures and stick to your wear schedules.

Contact lenses come in many forms to meet various needs, from cosmetic purposes to correcting vision issues. Regardless of the type you choose, your contact lens prescription should be accurate and up to date.

Soft contact lenses

Soft contact lenses are effective for a wide range of sight impairments. They provide flexibility and comfort that can boost a person’s overall daily quality of life, and they can be prescribed on a prescription-based schedule to ensure optimal vision health.

Depending on a person’s eye type and level of sight impairment, the optometrist may prescribe a standard soft lens or a specialty soft lens designed for a specific condition, such as keratoconus. The latter can mask moderate to severe irregular astigmatism and vertical coma, and it is available in both conventional and scleral designs.

Most soft lenses are based on hydrogel materials, which offer high oxygen transmissibility ratings for healthy continuous wear. A person’s eyecare practitioner will have detailed knowledge of the building blocks, properties and characteristics of each soft lens material. This allows the practitioner to discuss the best options for each patient’s individual needs and circumstances. Many of the latest innovations focus on reducing protein deposits, which can cause eye infections or blurred vision.

Rigid contact lenses

Rigid contact lenses are more durable than soft contacts and generally offer crisper, sharper vision. They are also less expensive in the long run, as they last longer and are easier to maintain. Additionally, they may be better suited to people who have astigmatism, who might otherwise not find soft contact lenses to be an appropriate option for their needs.

Conventional hard contacts, made of a stiff plastic called polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), have been in use since the 1930’s. Although they are inexpensive and durable, they are uncomfortable and reduce the amount of oxygen that reaches the cornea.

Modern, more advanced rigid contact lenses are known as gas permeable lenses or Rigid Gas Permeable (RGP) lenses and have a more flexible material that is designed to allow oxygen to reach the eye. These lenses are typically prescribed for extended wear ranging from one to six nights to 30 days, depending on the type of lens and your eye care professional’s evaluation of your ability to tolerate overnight contact lens wearing.

Toric contact lenses

A toric lens has a donut shape, instead of the spherical shape of regular contact lenses. This helps to correct astigmatism, which is a misshapen cornea. It’s like when your basketball is more spherical than a football. Small amounts of astigmatism cause blurry vision, but can be corrected with eyeglasses. Moderate to large amounts of astigmatism require a special lens design like a toric or RGP contact lens.

Toric lenses need an expert fit because they sit in a specific orientation to stay on the eye and maintain consistent clear vision throughout wear. To accomplish this, the lens is ballasted with a heavier portion on the bottom of the lens to help it align with the eye’s 6-12 o’clock axis.

Just like regular contact lenses, toric lenses come in many different types. You can choose from daily, monthly or extended-wear lenses. They also come in soft or rigid gas permeable (RGP) materials. You can even find bifocal or multifocal toric contact lenses.

Bandage contact lenses

Bandage contact lenses can be used to alleviate pain and discomfort after surgery or injury. They can also help keep medication in the eye, which can speed healing and prevent infection. In addition, they can be a convenient alternative to the use of eye pads. A recent study found that patients who wore therapeutic bandage contact lenses experienced less discomfort than those who did not at 1 week post-surgery. This was reflected in the results of both the OSDI questionnaire and slit-lamp examination.

When applying a bandage lens, an eye care professional applies 5% homatropine for cycloplegia and ensures that the lens fits well and centers correctly. After 15 to 30 minutes, he or she will evaluate the lens for fit and comfort.

Mrs Hunter says that bandage contact lenses are more comfortable than pressure patching, allow vision to be maintained and can help keep topical medications in the eye longer. She adds that they are usually made of a high-Dk soft or rigid lens material, which can prevent corneal dehydration.