Contact lenses are a great option to get a break from wearing glasses, change up your look, allow you to see clearly while playing sports, or allow you to shovel the driveway without your lenses fogging up. Most contact lens wearers wear what are known as soft contact lenses. We have so many great options for soft contact lenses nowadays. With improved comfort patients often tell me they forget they are wearing their lenses.
Despite the great options that exist for contact lenses, it is important to not forget that all contact lenses are a piece of plastic that sit on your eye. I always tell people a contact lens is like a pair of jeans. While we have a good idea of what contact lens is best for you based on the health and curve of the front of the eye, we can’t be sure it is going to fit properly until we look at it on your eyes. Contact lenses that are too tight on the eye may initially feel comfortable, but risk depriving your eyes of oxygen. Contact lenses that are too loose may create too much friction and change the texture of the inner lining of the eyelid, which can lead to discomfort and intolerance to contact lenses.
When contact lenses fit properly and are taken care of properly the risk of an adverse event (something bad happening to your eyes) remains low (1,2). Here are some things you need to know to help keep your eyes safe while enjoying your glasses free vision.
Do not wear contact lenses that have not been fit on your eyes
So how do you make sure contact lenses are fitting properly? Start with a contact lens fitting with your optometrist.
At a contact lens fitting we will choose a lens for you, have you try it on, assess your vision, assess the fit, and ensure you know how to properly use and care for your lenses. Once you are fit in a contact lens it is important to keep up with ongoing appointments to ensure your lenses continue to fit well and remain healthy for your eyes. All contact lens wearers should have their lenses reassessed on their eyes at least once per year. In fact, a risk factor for microbial keratitis (an infection of the cornea, which can be visually devastating) in contact lens wearers is ordering lenses online (1). This means ordering your lenses online increases your risk of losing your vision!
Remember if somewhere is offering you contact lenses without properly assessing them on your eyes or without requiring ongoing in office appointments, they are putting your vision at risk.
Keep up with daily care of your contact lenses
I often tell patients everything in life comes with risks and contact lens wear is no exception. What’s important though is understanding what we can do to minimize the risk of eye infection and inflammation while using contact lenses:
Wash your hands before you handle your contact lenses
Avoid using soap with microbeads as these can be left on your hands and get caught behind a contact lens – ouch!
Never use water with your contact lenses
This means only using cleaning solutions/cleaning routines prescribed by your optometrist and NEVER storing your contact lenses in water. You should also not wear your contact lenses in water – Ie) no swimming, hot tubbing, showering, or bathing with contacts in. If you are around water and want to wear your contacts, we recommend goggles so water will not get into the eyes. Contrary to popular belief no contact lens is Health Canada approved to use in water. A risk water poses is an infection called acanthamoeba keratitis (I wouldn’t recommend Googling unless gory pictures help you remember why it is important to take care of your contact lenses), which is a very difficult to treat infection of the eye that can lead to permanent vision loss.
Do not nap or sleep in your contacts
The cornea (clear part of the eye your contact lens sits on) is an avascular structure – this means it does not have a blood supply within it to deliver oxygen and nutrients to the tissue. When your eyes are closed your cornea gets less oxygen. This means if you sleep with a contact lens in you are further depriving your eyes of oxygen. If the oxygen levels dip too low your cornea can become hypoxic, which can lead to infection and inflammation. There may be instances where your optometrist may approve you to sleep in your contact lenses, but these are often for specific medical or refractive reasons and require close monitoring.
“When in doubt take it out“
Do not ‘tough out’ wearing a contact lens. If you have any discomfort, pain, or if you are sick (cold, flu, etc) you should not wear your contact lenses (This is also why it is important to have a backup pair of glasses). Any red eyes, discharge, vision changes, pain, or persistent discomfort should be assessed by your optometrist.
Interested in contact lenses? Unsure if the lenses you are wearing are right for you? Nervous you have never had proper contact lens care with an optometrist? Give us a call! Myself or one of our doctors would be more than happy to see you for an appointment and ensure we are doing everything we can to keep your eyes healthy.
Maier, P, et el. Contact Lens–Associated Keratitis— an Often Underestimated Risk. Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2022 Oct; 119(40): 669–674.
Bullimore, M, et el. Incidence of Corneal Adverse Events in Children Wearing Soft Contact Lenses. Eye Contact Lens. 2023 May; 49(5): 204–211.
