Today’s contact lenses offer satisfying and safe solutions to address an extensive range of vision needs.
If you are interested in wearing contact lenses, our office will examine your eyes to determine which type of lenses will provide you with the most accurate and comfortable fit as well as select the best ones to suit your daily vision requirements.
At present over 35 million Americans utilize contact lenses. While most individuals wear contact lenses for corrective purposes, a smaller percentage of people use them for either a therapeutic or cosmetic purpose.
Corrective contact lenses are used to provide clear, crisp vision for individuals who are dealing with either one or a combination of the following vision impairments:
We also offer hard-to-fit contact lenses for the treatment of eye irregularities related to disease or injury.
Choosing the correct type of contact lenses to provide a healthy and comfortable vision experience is based on your prescription, eyes shape and daily needs. Our eye doctor will measure your eyes to select the proper lens type and fit as well as determine the precise amount of vision correction that is required.
The following types of contact lenses are available:
Soft Contact Lenses
By far the most comfortable and popular contact lenses available today are soft contact lenses, made of water absorbing materials called hydrogels. Because of the high water content, these contact lenses are soft, flexible and extremely easy to wear. Soft contact lenses come in many versions and are available for daily wear, extended wear, or as disposables.
Daily-Wear Contact Lenses
Daily-wear disposable contact lenses are a type of soft lenses that are designed to be worn during the day and discarded nightly. Much more convenient and lower maintenance than other types of contact lenses, disposable lenses are a popular choice for many contact lens wearers.
Extended-Wear Contact Lenses
Extended-wear contact lenses can be worn both daily and overnight for longer periods of time. While some extended wear contact lenses are FDA approved for one to two weeks of continuous wear, others can be worn up to 30 days. Available as either gas permeable or soft contact lenses, an extended-wear contact lens prescription offers the convenience of not having to frequently remove your contact lenses for maintenance along with the benefit of waking up to clear, crisp vision. However, in the absence of proper care, extended-wear lenses may pose a higher risk of infection.
Rigid Gas-Permeable Lenses
More rigid and durable than soft contact lenses, rigid gas-permeable (RGP) contact lenses allow a healthy flow of oxygen to reach the eye. More resistant to lens deposits than soft contact lenses, RGP lenses do not need to be replaced as often and are less likely to harbor bacteria. Though initially not as comfortable as soft lenses, due to the ability to retain their shape, RGP lenses can provide crisper, clearer vision.
Toric Contact Lenses
Toric contact lenses are specially designed contact lenses used to help correct astigmatism. Typically, available as soft contact lenses, some toric contact lenses also come in a rigid gas-permeable version.
Bifocal and Multifocal Contact Lenses
Bifocal contact lenses contain two prescriptions in each lens to improve near and far vision for individuals affected by refractive errors and age-related presbyopia. Multifocal contact lenses have more than one lens power to provide clear vision for objects at multiple distances. While bifocal contact lenses contain two distinct segments with different prescriptions, multifocal contact lenses transition gradually between lens powers.
Monovision
Monovision offers an alternative approach for individuals who may be having difficulty getting used to bifocal or multifocal contact lenses. In these cases, single vision lenses are worn in each eye with one correcting for distance and the other correcting for near vision
Tinted or Cosmetic Contact Lenses
For individuals seeking a new look, contact lenses are available to correct vision and to enhance or change one’s natural eye color.
Your vision is in the very best of hands at our office. From assessing the health of your eyes to prescribing and accurately fitting you with just the right pair of contact lenses and instructing you in the proper methods of care, our eyecare professionals are with you every step of the way.
