We offer a wide range of contact lenses, to fit your personal vision needs with eye health and comfort included.
The following are all important factors in deciding what contact lenses are right for you:
- Eye Health
- Eye Shape
- Wearing Schedule Desired
- What Type Of Contact Lens You Prefer
Contact lenses are bit more of a hassle than eyeglasses, but most find the small inconvience worthwhile. For one, the right contact lenses are actually able to control myopia or nearsightedness and keep your eyes stronger and healthier. Plus, contacts keeps your vision clear at all angles, unlike glasses that can droop or fog up. Even if you prefer glasses over contacts, they are also a great option for going out to events or improving your game in active sports.
Prescription extremes, especially in farsightedness and astigmatism may limit or exclude one from wearing contact lenses.
Eye shape is an additional piece of information needed to decide what type of contacts lens is best for you. Eye shape is measured during a contact lens exam or a contact lens fitting.
We will try to fill your wishes, however, sometimes your desires and the findings about your eyes do not match. With an explanation of what is available, we will help you decide.
Types of Contacts Lenses
- Soft Contact Lenses
- Daily Wear
- Gas Permeable Contact Lenses
- Ortho-K lenses and Myopia Control Therapy
- Scleral Lenses
Soft Contacts Lenses
Disposable Contact Lenses from once/day to once/month minimize the care involved with contact lenses and minimize the complications wearing old contact lenses. Frequency of disposing ranges from 1-day to 1 month. Your prescription typically will influence your options.
They come in the following types: Standard Contact Lenses, Daily Contact Lenses, Extended or Overnight Contact Lenses, Spherical Soft Contact Lenses, Toric Soft Contact Lenses, and Bifocal Contact Lenses.
Standard Contact Lenses
These lenses are removed nightly to be cleaned and disinfected. Most patients achieve 12 to 18 hours of wear per day, and last for about 2 weeks until they are disposed. All standard soft contacts lenses are available in a colorless state, which is most common. Some newer lenses can change your eye color, but it’s essential that you contact your local eye care provider to ensure they are safe. More often than not, cheap colored contact lenses that are found online, often designed for halloween or specific costumes, are very harmful to the cornea and can cause serious eye damage.
Overnight Contact Lenses (Commonly known as Orthokeratology.)
Extended wear contact lenses are designed to allow them to be worn even during sleep. Our most successful patients wear their contact lenses 6 days/nights on, and 1 day off. We have found this schedule to be the best in keeping complications to a minimum, however, we do not guarantee that you will ever be able to wear the extended wear contact lenses overnight. Approximately 80% of our extended wear contact lens wearers do achieve the maximum wearing schedule. Extended wear lenses also give patients the flexibility of napping in their contacts even though on a regular basis they treat them as daily wear. Learn more about Ortho-K lenses and Myopia Control Therapy.
Spherical Soft Contact Lenses
Spherical soft contact lenses do not correct for astigmatism. If none or little is present in the prescription, this type of soft contact lens would be used. Several spherical soft contact lenses are available in cosmetic tints as well as the standard colorless.
Toric Soft Contact Lenses
Toric soft contact lenses correct for a moderate amount of astigmatism(the condition in which the horizontal and vertical shapes of the front part of the eye are not the same). Toric lenses, while generally colorless, are available in cosmetic tints on a limited basis.
Bifocal or Multifocal Contact Lenses
Bifocal contact lenses give distance and near correction to each eye.
Gas Permeable Contact Lenses (Rigid)
We only fit the healthier, more modern gas permeable rigid contact lenses. These come in a light blue tint only. Presently, gas permeable contact lenses are for daily wear or extended wear.
Routine for Obtaining Contact Lenses
- Complete eye exam (30 minutes)
- Contact lens fitting (30 or 45 minutes)
- Training/dispensing appointment approximately one and a half weeks after your fitting when the contact lenses arrive.(1 hour)
- First contact lens check, one week after dispensing. ( 15 minutes)
- Additional contact lens checks over a three month period.
You are welcome to call our office to ask any questions and to make an appointment to find what type of contact lens would be right for you.
Additional Factors for your decision
Trusting an eye doctor’s knowledge to fit your contacts is better than just putting them on yourself to try.
Qualified optometrists are skilled in determining what constitutes a good, successful contact lens fitting. Not only are eye doctors experienced with what contact lenses work for which patients, but they can quickly identify what doesn’t work and other alternatives. Time and effort are needed to make sure that all factors that are in play are dealt with before you finish your fitting. Common issues in contact lenses are fitting technique, contact lens measurements, sensitivity to the lenses, and contact lens care.
What makes this issue overlooked is due to contact lenses being considered commodities. So, if those who faced problems in the past when wearing lenses may have a new alternative that’s safer and more comfortable today.
A contact lenses is a health / medical device, and improper care can cause irritation and problems. Our doctors will determine which modality works best for you based on health, lifestyle, and your pair of eyes.