Contact Lens Care (Soft Lenses)

There are 5 steps in lens care. To insure your eyes always stay healthy and oxygenated these steps are essential

1. Solutions and Cleaning:~

Your optician will have recommended you solution when you had your lens fitted. A lot of the newer solutions are fool proof but there are some things you need to know about them. Most of the solutions come with a no rub recommendation. Although this is the case, rubbing the lens with solution proves to beneficial. As well as rubbing the lens after taking them out and putting them in, it is essential to change the solution in the lens case everyday to ensure all day long comfort.

• The lens case if possible should be changed every month.
• Clean the case at least once a week with warm soapy water.
• Use a toothbrush to scrub the case out.

2. Preparation for the Lens:~

• The first and most important thing to do is wash your hands. As obvious as it seems it is probably the most disregarded.
• Next is to check the right way to put the lens in.
• The lens will go in your eye both ways but if the wrong side is inserted the lens will feel uncomfortable and may even pop out.

When doing the bowl test you must place the lens on the tip of your finger. If the edge of the lens is slightly curved in and looks like the shape of a bowl this is the correct side up. If on the other hand the edges of the lens are curved out this is the wrong side. Sometimes when doing this test it may not be as clear if this is the case flip the lens round and check both sides.

To find out which is the right way up you need to place the lens in the crease of the palm of your hand. You should now start to close the hand, doing this you should notice that the lens rolls in to form the shape of a taco, if done with the correct side up. If the lens is inside out the edges of the lens will flair out and the middle of the lens will fold out against itself.

On some lens manufactures engrave lenses with numbers or letter. For instance the Freshlook coloured lens have FL engraved on the lens. When checking the lens the letter should be the right way round going into the eye.

If you wear makeup, eye creams or hand lotion it is recommended to put the contact lenses in first as it helps the lens to stay cleaner in the eye. Hands need to be washed and free of any lotions and lint from towels, tissues etc before putting the lens in.

3. Insertion of Lenses:~

• Place the contact lens on the index finger of the index finger of the hand you write with.
• With the same hand take the middle finger and hold the bottom lid open.
• With the free hand reach over and hold the top lid close to the lashes open.
• You should have created a large enough space for the contact lens to go in without touching anything other then the eyes.
• Bring the finger closer to the eye until all edges of the lens are touching the eye.
• The contact lens will release from your finger to your eye.
• Let go of the lids slowly.
• Slowly close your eye and pat the eye a little to get rid of any air bubbles that may have occurred.
• Repeat this process for the other eye.

4. Removal of Lenses:~

There is two main ways of removing contact lens.

• The first is to pull the lens down with the index finger and bring in the thumb and pinch the lens out.
• The second way is to pull the lens down and to the side with your index finger. The lens will roll up into the side of your eye for you to take out.

5. Wearing Schedule:~

When starting to wear the lens you must start off slowly and then build it up. Initially you should start wearing the contact lenses for about 4 hours, and then gradually build this up by 2 hours everyday until you get to 8-10hours which is the recommended time unless specified by your optician. If wearing the disposable lenses you must get rid of these at the proper time and not try over using them as this can lead to infections, dry eyes and other problems.

6. Emergencies and Discomfort:~

If you find that you have any of the following, remove your lenses and contact your optician as soon as possible.

•  Burning and Watery Eyes
•  Persistent Pain
•  Constant Redness
•  Sensitivity of Light
•  Hazy vision that remains an hour or so after removal.

Dry Eyes:~

Dry eye is the loss or reduction of the eye to naturally produce tears. It is one of the most frequent causes to visit an eye car professional.

There may be a variety of factors which contribute to this problem such as: ~

•  Aging
•  Medication, including Antihistamines, birth control pills, diuretics, cardiovascular medications, pain relives and anti inflammatories.
•  Eye strain from long periods of reading or computer work.
•  A dry, humid or windy environment.

Dry eye syndrome is an ongoing condition which has no cure, but there are drops such as artificial tears, lubricating eye drops that may reduce or eliminate the dry scratching feeling. If you are a contact lens wearer who experiences dry eyes you can try to help this with either changing your lenses to a lens which has a higher water content depending on what line of work you are in or you can buy eye drops such as blink eye drops to wear with contact lenses.