Contact Lenses Care

In general you should follow the same adaptation and wearing suggestions given for hard contact lenses. However, there are a few exceptions:

Soft lenses require very little adaptation time in comparison with hard lenses. This does not mean you should treat the wearing schedule your doctor gives you casually. Be consistent and follow the wearing schedule during the initial period. Since the contacts are so comfortable, you may not even feel them and may be tempted to exceed the recommended hours. This is not a good idea, since your corneas still need to adapt to the presence of a foreign object, no matter how comfortable it feels. Soft lenses can still be overworn, which leads to problems with the cornea such as oxygen deprivation and edema (swelling).

After you’ve gone through the initial adaptation period, intermittent wear is perfectly acceptable. You don’t have to follow the full-time everyday wear that’s mandatory with hard lenses. If you don’t feel like wearing them for a day or two, or want to cut down the number of hours, it’s no problem. However, if you cease wearing them completely for a number of weeks and then decide to go back to full-time wear, I suggest that you only wear your lenses for five hours the first day and gradually build up again to all-day wear. It’s necessary to disinfect the lenses before inserting them again.

Typical Wearing Schedule —Soft Contact Lenses

DAY 1
Three periods of two hours on.

DAY 2
Three periods of three hours on.

DAY 3
Three periods of four hours on.

DAY 4
Two periods of five hours on.

DAY 5
Two periods of six hours on.

DAY 6
Ten hours on.
DAY 7
Twelve hours on.

DAY 8
Thirteen hours on.

Since a good tear flow is so very important for soft contact lens wearers, make sure you practice the blinking exercises.

The amount of lens sensation varies from person to person according to the individual’s threshold of pain tolerance. You may feel as though there’s something in the eye initially, but this passes as your eye adapts. If the sensation persists, remove the lens, clean it, rinse it, examine it, and reinsert it. There may have been a foreign particle under the lens, or the lens may have been inside out. If, after these procedures, the irritation persists, have the lens and your eyes checked by your doctor.

After Day 8, one hour is usually added each day until the wearer has reached his or her own maximum wearing time.

Care and handling of Soft Contact Lens

Soft contact lenses must be handled very carefully since they can easily tear. Handling, inserting, centering, and removing soft lenses will soon become second nature and you’ll rapidly find your own efficient style and technique.

Wash and dry your hands thoroughly before touching the lenses. Not only are creams, oils, makeup, and so on a danger, but the minute amount of proteins on your unwashed fingertips can inactivate the preservatives in the contact lens solutions, so strict hygiene is a must. Prepare your work area before you begin and acquire the habit of always starting with the right lens first so you lessen the chances of a lens mixup.

Because of the nature of the plastic from which they are made, it’s especially important that you remember to keep soft lenses constantly hydrated. When they’re not in your eyes, they must be kept in a sterile saline solution. A dried-out lens becomes very brittle. Therefore handle it gingerly and rehydrate it by soaking it in a saline solution.

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