Posts Tagged → correct nearsightedness
Contact Lenses Today
Did you try contact lenses years ago and give up after being frustrated? You might want to reexamine your information.
Contact lenses today are of two types: soft lenses that are made from water-containing plastics and GP, “oxygen permeable” rigid contact lenses.
There are different kinds of wear cycles. Daily wear contacts have to be removed nightly, cleaned and stored properly. Extended wear lenses are safe for wear overnight. Some lenses are continuous wear and can be worn for up to 30 days.
Contacts can also be described by how often you throw the old pair away and replace them with new ones.
Daily disposables are discarded nightly, requiring no care, cleaning or case. Other replacement intervals of time include weekly, bi-weekly, monthly and quarterly. All of these are classified as disposable. Non-disposable lenses need to be replaced once a year but this kind usually are unusual or difficult-to manufacture prescriptions.
These days contacts come in various designs for different vision problems. Spherical ones correct nearsightedness or farsightedness and are indicated by a minus or a plus on your prescription. Bifocal contact lenses are like multi-focal eyeglasses in that they use different optical zones to correct the age-related, decreased ability to see both near and far, known as presbyopia. Do you have an astigmatism? There are contacts for it that correct either nearsightedness or farsightedness.
Tired of your eye color? Many lenses come in colors that enhance or even change your natural eye color along with making the corrections you need. There are even special effect lenses that are for fun or theatrical and film productions. Prosthetic lenses are colored ones that can cosmetically mask eye disfigurement. Many contact lenses come with an embedded UV inhibitor as well.
So what are the right lenses for you?
Your contacts need to do three things: properly fit your cornea, give you clear vision and provide any of the “extra” benefits you want, such as color, disposable or multiple powers.
There are more than tens of thousands of combinations of size, shape and power. For this reason they are a prescription item and must be fitted by a skilled professional. This will ensure a comfortable fit and great vision. Only an eye care practitioner can evaluate your eyes to tell which lens is right for you while taking into account your special needs, such as dry eyes, color requests or overnight wear.
Dr. Ronald J. Martin of VisionHealth Optometry focuses on quality eye care services to family members of all ages. Services include eye exams, contact lens fittings, retinal photography, pre- and post-operative care, and glasses frames and lens selection. Dr. Martin’s office is located at 1440 Medical Center Dr. Suite2, Rohnert Park, CA 94928. He can be reached at 707-206-0290 or email him at questions@vision-health.com. Visit VisionHealth Optometry online at http://www.vision-health.com.
Dr. Martin is a member of the California Optometric Association, the American Optometric Association, the Redwood Empire Optometric Society, and the Optometry Alumni Association of the University of California.
