What to Know About Contact Lenses Before You Purchase

Soft Contact Lenses

The most popular type of contact lens in the world is that of the soft contact lenses which can be used for a number of different vision issues. Whether a patient has nearsightedness (myopia), farsightedness (hyperopia), blurred vision (astigmatism), or any form of age related vision issues (presbyopia), soft contact lenses will be able to help.

This type of contact lens works by conforming to the shape of the wearers eye and are renowned for being comfortable and consistently staying in the right place. This makes them perfect for people that play sports, do lots of physical exercise, or lead an active lifestyle.

Soft contact lenses are available in a number of different formats:

• Daily wear contact lenses are designed for people that have smaller budgets as these are normally the cheapest type to purchase. These lenses are only meant to be worn throughout the day and should be removed and cleaned overnight.

• Extended wear lenses on the other hand can be worn permanently as long as they are cleaned on a weekly basis. Even though these lenses can be used when we sleep, it is still advised that they should be removed as there is a chance that eye infections can develop.

• Disposable contact lenses are easily the most expensive type of soft contact lens on the market. These are usually worn for a period of time such as daily, weekly or monthly and are simply thrown away after use. There is no need for cleaning this type of lens but they should be removed every night.

Hard Contact Lens

Hard contact lenses are the other type of lens that is available to those that have problems with their vision. These lenses are more rigid and are used for a variety of different vision problems. This type of lenses are recommended to people that have tried the soft contacts and have not been happy enough with the results they received.

Hard lenses generally allow a bit more breathability than soft lenses which means that there is a lower risk of picking up eye infections. The only real issue with hard lenses is it can take quite a while to adjust to them, sometimes as long as a week.

These lenses are also meant for more permanent use, require daily cleaning overnight and can last for as long as a few years.

Summary

Both types of contact lens will give patients an improvement in sight but it will generally depend preference as to which ones a patient will prefer to use. There are a variety of contact lenses to choose from, so it should not be too difficult to pick up the perfect type for your eyesight.