Fashionable lenses for the eyes. What to choose and how to put on properly

The history of the production of soft contact lenses began in the late fifties of the last century thanks to the developments of the Czech scientist Otto Vichterle who was able to obtainA unique polymer that has the ability to pass air and be wetted with water.

Used initially only for correction of poor vision, nowadays contact lenses have also been used for decorative purposes. With their help, you can change the color of the iris, as well as create a fantasy image that can shock others. Contact lenses with a pattern printed on them are called carnival, but we'll talk about them later.

How to wear contact lenses

How to wear contact lenses? About this you must tell a contact specialist, which is now in every store of optics. Individual consultation, during which the client receives practical skills of putting on and removing lenses, is included in the list of mandatory services of such a store.

View user manual in the video how to put on and remove contact lenses:

So, you have purchased contact lenses, and you will have to put them on for the first time. How to wear lenses for the eyes correctly and without any harm?

• The most important requirement is the perfect cleanliness of hands when in contact with them. Only this will prevent the penetration of dangerous microorganisms that threaten the health of your eyes. When you are going to take off or put on contact lenses, be sure to wash your hands with soap or treat them with a sanitary napkin moistened with some alcohol-containing liquid( in case you can not wash your hands).
• To wear contact lenses is more convenient and safer, sitting at the table and having a mirror at hand. It will also save you from having to crawl on the floor in search of a fallen lens if it suddenly slips out of your fingers.
• Containers intended for their storage are marked with( R - for the right eye, L - for the left eye).This is especially convenient for those who wear contact lenses that have different diopters. Never confuse their location.

Put the extracted lens on the cushion of the index finger of your leading hand( for right-handers it is right, for left-handeders it is left), make sure that it is not turned inside out.

• Many newcomers often ask the question: "Which side do I wear the lenses on?"The lens, which is in proper working order, looks like a tiny bowl with a convex base and upward-directed edges. Lynochka, turned inside out, reminds us of a somewhat flattened plate, whose edges are horizontally oriented and should not be worn.
• Inspecting the lens, you need to make sure its integrity and no deformation. If it reveals tears or wrinkled edges, refuse to use them and remove another lens from the package.

If the lens is in order, proceed to the procedure for putting it on. Once and for all, decide from which eye you will begin the installation of contact lenses and always adhere to this order. This will prevent confusion.

1. Holding the lens on the tip of the index finger, with your thumb slightly pull back the lower eyelid, and pull the upper or the middle or index finger of the other hand.
2. Looking up, we set the lens slightly below the pupil. Now we let both ages go and look down.
3. Close the eye and gently massage the eyelid so that the lens has the correct position. You can turn your eyes with closed eyelids, and then blink. Similarly, we put on the second lens on the other eye.

• Those who wear contact lenses recently, occupy one more question: "What will happen if the lens is incorrectly put on?".We hasten to reassure those who fear terrible consequences.
  If you put the lens inside out, the catastrophe will not happen, because turned inside out, it simply can not gain a foothold and will begin to change its position, moving off after each blink.
  In this case, it must be removed, rinsed with a special solution and put on again, but this time is correct.

1. Thoroughly wash my hands and sit at the table, setting the mirror in front of me. The lens with which you always start the installation is first and removed.
2. With the middle fingers of both hands, we spread our eyelids wide.
3. Extract the lens, gently grabbing it with the tips of the thumb and index finger( the so-called pinch method).

If you have long nails, you need extra care, because one awkward movement is enough to damage the vulnerable tissues of the eye. Some people, when removing contact lenses, prefer to use tweezers.

Completing this section of the article, I want to give a few general recommendations:

• Lens storage solution must be periodically changed. The same rule concerns the timely replacement of the lenses themselves, since they are designed for a certain period of operation.
• The wearing regimen must be strictly in accordance with the recommendations of your contacting specialist and the manufacturer.
• Contact lenses can only be cleaned with specially formulated compounds.

• Remove and wear contact lenses with freshly washed hands.
• To wash the lenses before use, only fresh sterile solution should be used.

• With improper care of contact lenses, they can become a breeding ground for pathogenic bacteria and fungi, which poses a great danger to eye health.

What are scleral lenses

Scleral contact lenses are equipped with a special rim, with which they completely cover not only the cornea, but also the protein shell of the eyes, called sclera. In other words, these are lenses for the whole eye. Scleral lenses appeared much earlier than corneal lenses, were initially used only for therapeutic purposes and were intended for patients:

• with congenital pathologies of eyeballs,
• with increased sensitivity of the cornea,
• with complex cases of strabismus,
• with developed form of keratoconus.

The wearing of scleral lenses promotes the straightening of the cornea in patients suffering from keratoconus, a disease in which the cornea takes the form of a cone with a directed apex. Their positive effect in this case is achieved due to mechanical action and the presence of a moisturizing eye of tear fluid, since rather convex scleral lenses do not interfere with its free circulation.

Scleral lenses were invented as a corrective or therapeutic accessory. In addition to treating the above listed eye diseases, they are used to treat chemical burns and post-surgical complications. Medical lenses are made of polymakon - a unique material that is characterized by high gas permeability, strength, elasticity and biocompatibility with eye tissues.

What is the advantage of the polymakon?

• By gas permeability, polymacon exceeds all other materials used to make contact lenses, and therefore scleral lenses made of polymacon do not usually lead to corneal edema( in contrast to the same models made of PPMA material).
• Polimakon is characterized by increased strength. Lenses from it can not be scratched or damaged during cleaning, in the process of putting on and removing.
• Thanks to the filter contained in it, the polymacon has the ability to absorb ultraviolet radiation.
• Unlike metafilkona( the material used to make the majority of soft lenses), quickly contaminated with sediments of various protein particles, the polymacon is not susceptible to accumulation and deposition of any contaminants due to its special mesh structure.
• Due to its excellent biocompatibility, the polymacon is not torn off by the tissues of the eye and is therefore widely used for the manufacture of eye prostheses and artificial lenses.
• The use of the polymacon significantly reduces the period of eye adaptation to new lenses, because soft eye tissues do not react to this material.

Thanks to all these qualities scleral lenses made of polymacon are safe for eye health, durable( with good care they can last about two years), are elastic and breathable.

It is not easy to choose scleral lenses: this can take up to six months, because due to the special strength of heat-resistant plastic( which is a polymacon), you can give the lenses the desired shape and size only with a special machine, and to adjust it to the shape of the eye it is necessary to use a high-precision diagnosticequipment.

Steps for the selection of scleral lenses

The manufacturing process of individual scleral lenses includes the following steps:

1. Determination of the exact size of future lenses.
2. The first trial fitting of individually manufactured transparent lenses with which the patient leaves home and tries on them alone.
3. Following are several visits to the doctor, during which the specialist finds out the degree of adaptation of the patient to new lenses and adjusts the configuration and size of the lenses. The purpose of correction is to make the lenses as comfortable and aesthetic as possible.
4. The final fitting stage involves adding the latest refinement changes and marking the lens( the front part).
5. Next comes the artist: he performs the drawing of the smallest details of the eye, including the application of shadows and eye vessels.
6. Presentation of finished lenses to the patient.

As we see, the manufacture of scleral lenses is a very difficult and long process, which can only be entrusted to qualified specialists.

How to put on scleral lenses?

1. Put the lens on the pads at once three fingers of one hand( since a large lens can simply not hold on the surface of one finger and fall).
2. Using the middle and index fingers of the other hand, maximally extend the eyelids and fix them in this position.
3. Looking in the mirror, we combine the surface of the scleral lens with the eye. After making sure that the correspondence is complete, carefully return the eyelids to their original position and close the eye.
4. Slightly bending the lower eyelid, gently move the lens from side to side, down and up: this will tell you whether it is properly installed.

The procedure for installing a properly selected scleral lens usually takes no more than 20 seconds.

How to remove scleral lenses?

1. Maximally pull down the lower eyelid and expose the lower edge of the lens.
2. Clamp the exposed lower edge of the lens and gently pull it down in a direction parallel to the face: this will protect the upper eyelid from any impact.
3. Place the lens in a special container filled with a fresh portion of saline and tightly close its lid. In order to save the lens from possible contamination, you can shake the container a little with the lens in it.

Carnival lenses

Carnival( or theatrical) lenses, in the youth environment called "crazy" lenses, are colored contact lenses, designed not for vision correction, but for entertainment only.

Completely changing the appearance of a person, these lenses are often used during filming and theatrical performances, as they help make-up artists to create truly unforgettable imaginative images.

First appeared in Hollywood studios, carnival lenses have spread throughout the world. Now they are widely used during friendly parties, on all sorts of holidays and corporate parties. With their help they arrange funny jokes, create masquerade costumes and simply provide a good mood for others, since people in such lenses look very original and sometimes funny.

Manufacturers of carnival lenses do not cease to amaze consumers with their imagination. Now you can buy lenses with images of emoticons, cat's pupils, cobwebs, sports symbols, flames, footballs - in general, just do not list.

Black scleral lenses are used to create creepy images during the celebration of Halloween, theme parties and carnivals, as there can be no other impression when looking at a character whose eyes are impenetrable black hemispheres.

White scleral lenses, seen for the first time on some cheerful holiday, can be frightened out of jest, as it is a sight for people with strong nerves.

Scleral lenses, enlarging the eyes, are also not a means of correcting vision. Their destination is limited only to creating a decorative effect. When wearing such lenses, the eyes visually increase in size almost 1.5 times. Popularity of such lenses was largely promoted by a well-known video clip with the participation of Lady Gaga, who during the shoots wore lenses with the effect of eye enlargement.

Requirements for decorative lenses

Despite the fact that the use of carnival lenses is entertaining, they are subject to the same requirements as to corrective vision lenses:

• To purchase theatrical lenses , a prescription for is required, even for people, visionwhich does not need correction. The fact is that when choosing contact lenses( in addition to visual acuity), other parameters are taken into account. For example, the radius of curvature of the cornea and its diameter, the definition of which can only be determined by a specialist.

• The shelf life of carnival lenses is usually limited to 1-3 months. After it expires, it is no longer possible to use such lenses. Even if for all this time they have never been used.

Find out if it's safe to wear decorative contact lenses, doctor's opinion in video:

• Caring for carnival lenses is exactly the same as for regular lenses: they need timely cleaning, disinfection and proper storage.
• The time for wearing the theater lenses should not exceed six hours.

• You should never wear contact lenses, even if they have been cleaned after use. This is the direct route to transmission of the infection, the spread of which can be the person who carried them.

All theatrical lenses are hand-decorated by professional artists, which inevitably affects their price( especially for custom-made lenses).

Acuvue lenses( Acuvue)

The lenses produced by the American company Johnson &Johnson since 1987, have long established themselves as a reliable and high-quality tool for vision correction.

The ACUVUE contact lenses range includes the following modifications:

• One-day lenses, which are characterized by absolute oxygen permeability and completely eliminating the risk of accumulation of contaminants. This type of lens is most suitable for wearing in large cities with their high level of gas contamination, which contributes to the rapid contamination of lenses.
• Lenses calculated by for a two-week period of wearing .Thanks to the use of an effective moisturizing component, this type of lens can be worn for a week, without even removing the night's sleep. Provided only for daily use, the life of these lenses is extended to two weeks.
• Lenses designed for people working in extremely unfavorable conditions , which causes excessive dry eyes( in rooms with excessively dry or air-conditioned air), and also spend most of the day in front of the computer monitor.
• Colored contact lenses of two types , with which you can either change the natural shade of the eyes, or radically change the color of the cornea.
• Lenses designed by to correct the astigmatism of ( in the line of lenses of this type there are all the modifications described above).

Absolutely all kinds of Acuvue contact lenses are able to protect the eyes from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation, since they are equipped with a UV filter.

How to put on acuvue lenses?

The rules for putting on and removing acuvue lenses are practically the same as donning conventional contact lenses.

Colored lenses for brown eyes

Colored lenses for brown eyes are represented by two types: color and tone.

1. tinted contact lenses are poorly colored, because they are intended only to give the natural color of the brown eyes a special depth and saturation. Tinted lenses can not cover the intense color of dark eyes, so do not expect that she will make her brown eyes sky-blue. In the best case, the color of your Karim eyes will remain, but will only get a faint blue tint.
2. Colored contact lenses differ in density and color intensity. Therefore, they can be safely used for radical changes in the cornea of ​​the brown eyes. Modern manufacturers produce lenses, the color palette of which amazes imagination with its diversity.

The shades of turquoise, pearls, violets, a rich gamut of all shades of gray and blue are just an incomplete list of what is offered to anyone who wants to radically change their image. There are also lenses, painted with several shades of the same color, smoothly flowing from one to another.

How to wear colored lenses?

Just like ordinary contact lenses. One should only remember that wearing lenses that radically change the natural color of your eyes is best not always, but from time to time: let it be like an evening dress for your eyes.

And now let's summarize some results. Which contact lenses should I choose? We talked a lot about different types, but you can solve this only after a careful examination of the eyes, which can only be done by a qualified ophthalmologist. You can consult with him in any specialized salon of optics: this will save you from mistakes in the selection of lenses and keep your eyes healthy. Related Videos:

3:52

CTV.BY: How to choose the right glasses and lenses

12:35

How to choose the right lens and can they replace the glasses? GLASSES or LENSES |

|Why do not I do LASER CORRECTION?