Health Library

​Contact lenses are medical devices. They should be prescribed by qualified eye care practitioners and instructions/advice given should be complied with. Depending on lifestyle needs or recommendations from the eye care practitioner, there are different lenses available. Below shows the main modalities and factors in choosing a suitable lens.

	​Rigid Gas Permeable​	​Soft Disposable	​​Soft Permanent
​Visual Acuity		​	​
​Comfort	​
​Durability & Value	​	​​	​
​Oxygen Delivery		​	​
​Deposit Resistance		​	​

Considerations for Contact Lens Wear

Signs and symptoms of contact lens complications/ over wear

Proper contact lens care compliance reduces the risk of related complications/over wear that may still arise otherwise. If encountered, contact lens wear should be stopped and resumed when better or as advised by an eye care practitioner.

• Eye discomfort
• Red eyes
• Blur vision
• Eye discharge
• Dry eyes

Types of contact lenses

The main types of contact lenses include rigid gas permeable contact lenses and soft contact lenses. Soft contact lenses vary between monthly to daily disposables and permanent ones. The suitability of the different contact lens types depend on individual’s needs and expectations.

Associated complications

Some of the more common contact lens complications that may be diagnosed by your eye care practitioner:

• Giant Papillary Conjunctivitis
  Bumps or rash underneath the eyelids; usually due to an allergic reaction to dirty contact lenses or contact lens solution compounds.
• Corneal Neovascularization
  New blood vessel growth on the cornea, usually due to the lack of oxygen supply due to long wearing hours or a tight fitted contact lens.
• Corneal Epitheliopathy
  Surface breaks or scratches on the cornea; common causes are improper removal techniques, severe dry eyes or foreign body effects.
• Contact Lens-induced Acute Red Eye (CLARE)
  Sudden red eyes with accompanied discomfort; multifactorial contributions such as deposits or bacterial contamination on contact lens, lack of oxygen supply or tight fitted contact lens leading to inflammation in the eye.
• Corneal Ulcers
  One of the most serious complication that can result from contact lens wear with the possibility of scarring or vision loss. Described as an open sore on the cornea caused either by inflammation or infection. Contact lens users usually report a combination of the above-mentioned signs and symptoms with a rapid decline if untreated. Early intervention usually results in full recovery as opposed to a delay in treatment having higher possibilities of vision loss.

Contact lens care compliance

Compliance to good contact lens care prolongs the lens quality and provides good vision, comfort and eye health. Listed below are some important Do’s and Don’ts

Do’s

• Hand hygiene
• Proper insertion and removal techniques
• Regular cleaning of contact lens
• Scheduled replacement of contact lens, solutions and contact lens case
• Maximum of 8 – 10 hours per day and 5 – 6 days per week of wear
• Periodic visits to your eye care practitioner
• Insert and remove the contact lens before applying and removing eye make up

Don’ts

• Sleep/swim/shower while wearing contact lens
• Share your contact lens with anyone
• Use tap water to clean the contact lens
• Reuse contact lens solution; empty the contact lens
  solution completely from the contact lens case daily