All About Disposable Contact Lenses

When choosing to wear contact lenses, many patients are often confused about the different rotational patterns daily, extended, weekly, bi-weekly and monthly wear contact lenses require. Below is an overview on the difference in rotational type of lens, along with care instructions, to help you, the consumer, make an informal choice before you visit your eye care professional.

Daily wear - Daily wear contacts are meant to be worn during the daytime, and removed while you are sleeping. Both disposable and non-disposable contacts can be daily wear. It is not recommended to wear daily wear contacts for an extended amount of time. Instead, let your eyes relax and wear eye glasses if you plan on burning the midnight oil.

Extended wear - Extended wear contacts can be worn for an extended amount of time before removal. Some can even be left in while napping or taking a rest. Extended wear contacts can be both disposable and non-disposable. Should you feel any discomfort while wearing your extended wear contacts, remove them, clean them, and let them soak for a while. Enzymes and other proteins may have built up on the lenses causing irritation. While they are cleaning, your eyes can take a break and have a chance to be in their natural state.

Weekly contacts - Weekly contacts are disposable contacts that are meant to be replaced once a week. They can be either daily or extended wear. Due to their highly disposable nature, these are the thinnest of all of the contact lenses. Weekly lenses make great economical sense for users who tend to loose contacts, as they aren't out as much for a lost lens, as compared to the longer-lasting lenses.

Bi-weekly contacts - Bi-weekly contact lenses require a little more care than weekly lenses. While they are disposable, bi-weekly contacts require an enzymatic cleaning once a week. A helpful way to remember this is to put a new pair in on Monday, and that weekend perform the cleaning. It is also helpful to write the date of the new pair used on the box, in case of forgetfulness. Bi-weekly contact lenses, are some what sturdier than weekly lenses, however the financial risk for a lost or damaged lenses increases with that benefit.

Monthly contacts - Monthly lenses require the most care and are the biggest financial risk when it comes to disposable contacts. With some pairs costing around $20.00 a month (toric lenses) users have to be extremely careful and perform diligent maintenance on their contacts. Monthly contacts will need a deep cleaning, and a good enzymatic cleaning can last for four hours. Also, it is most important for wearers not to use their lenses in situations where they could become easily lost or damaged. When it does come time to replace a pair, a helpful hint would be to switch out your pair on a given day of the month, say every 1^st of the month. That way, there is no confusion about replacement days, and you will be using your contacts for the longest allowable time.

In the end, speak with your eye care professional. Let him or her know about your activities and how much time you can dedicate to contact lens maintenance. Also, if you have a history of loosing or damaging your lenses, be sure to reveal that too. When in doubt, many facilities have trial pairs for patients to use before they make the financial and time commitment needed for new contact lenses.