Daily contact lenses are increasingly popular, in no small part due to their maintenance-free nature. You wear them for a day, then toss them. No cleaning or storage required. However, another important aspect of contact lenses is their ease of use. Where do daily contacts rank? Are daily contact lenses more difficult to put in or remove?
Longer use lenses are thicker (and they are also often more rigid) than daily disposable lenses. This is largely because they need to be sturdy enough to hold up for longer periods in your eyes, and remain comfortable.
Daily lenses are very thin, soft lenses, since they are not meant to be worn for so long. This can make them very comfortable for many, but they are less sturdy and for some people the lack of rigidity may make it more difficult (or easy) to insert or remove.
Inserting daily contact lenses
Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water, and dry them with a clean towel.
Remove the contact lens from its storage case, and rinse it with a sterile saline solution or disinfecting solution.
Hold the lens between your thumb and index finger, making sure the lens is not inside out. The edges of the lens should be rounded and the lens should look like a cup.
Place the lens on the tip of your index finger, and bring it up to your eye.
Use your other hand to gently pull down on your lower eyelid to create a "pocket."
Look up, and gently place the lens on your eye.
Close your eye, and gently massage the lens into place with your finger.
Repeat the process with your other eye.
Removing daily contact lenses:
Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water, and dry them with a clean towel.
Look up, and gently pinch the lens between your thumb and index finger.
Gently slide the lens down to the white part of your eye (the sclera).
Gently remove the lens from your eye.
Repeat the process with your other eye.
Removing daily contact lenses:
It's important to follow these steps carefully to ensure that you are inserting and removing your contact lenses properly. If you have any difficulty with these steps, or if you experience any discomfort while wearing your contact lenses, you should contact your eye care provider for further assistance.
So, is there anything that makes taking out a daily lens more difficult, compared to longer-use lenses?
Generally speaking, probably not. However, you should bear in mind that daily lenses, being thinner, have a greater chance of tearing and of drying out. If either of these happens, it might become more difficult to remove the lenses.
On the other hand, you don’t have to worry about potentially damaging these lenses as you remove them, since you’ll be throwing them out anyway.
Amplify EyeCare is a team of a passionate and experienced optometrists practicing eye care at the cutting edge of technology and vision science. We are growing with new locations coming across the US.
