How do You Sterilize Contact Lenses Cases? By A Nutt At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

Contact Lenses

Whether you are considering switching over to contact lenses from eyeglasses you've already been using or have just been prescribed corrective lenses for the first time, there are many different things to consider about getting contact lenses. There are several different types of contact lenses available on the market: soft contact lenses, gas permeable lenses, rigid gas permeable lenses, color contact lenses, bifocal or multifocal contact lenses and more. Your eye doctor may go over the many options with you, but if you prepare yourself by reading about them beforehand, you can arm yourself with informed questions to ask at your visit. You eye care professional will go over several aspects of proper care and cleaning of your contact lenses, some of which is detailed briefly below.

Proper Care and Cleaning

No matter what type of contact lenses you and your eye care professional determine are right for you, proper care and cleaning of your lenses is crucial to maintaining good eye health. Care and cleaning of your lenses will vary only slightly depending on whether you have been prescribed extended wear, daily wear or disposable contact lenses. You will need some supplies on hand to properly clean and care for your new contacts. The necessary supplies include:

- High quality contact lens solution
- Contact lens case (details on how to sterilize your cases are below)
- Soft (gentle) plastic tweezers

Cleaning your contact lenses is not difficult, but it is important to be very thorough and very consistent. To clean your contact lenses properly, follow the steps below:

1. Wash and dry your hands thoroughly before starting the process.
2. Take each lens out and rinse with multi-purpose solution by squirting the solution directly on both sides of the lens.
3. Fill your lens case with fresh solution, put the lenses in the case, and screw the case closed. Let the contact lenses soak for at least 6 hours (overnight is best).
4. Before you reinsert your contact lenses, rinse each side with fresh solution again.
Unfortunately, simply being diligent about cleaning your contact lenses daily is not enough. In order to prevent infection and maintain good eye health, it is imperative that you properly sterilize your contact lens cases on a regular basis.

Sterilizing Your Contact Lens Cases

Unfortunately, contact lens cases can be a source of bacteria growth and can easily lead to infection. In order to avoid problems resulting from germs and bacteria transferring to your lenses from your lens cases, you must properly disinfect your contact lenses regularly. There are a few different recommended methods for properly sterilizing contact lens cases.

1. Empty, clean and rinse your contact lens cases every few days. The cases should be cleaned with the chemical solutions recommended by the manufacturer of the lens case. If no such recommendation can be found on the packaging, try contacting the manufacturer's customer care department to see what the recommend. While this method is pretty simple, it is not foolproof in sterilizing and killing all bacteria.

2. Many contact lens wearers recommend simply placing contact lens cases in the dishwasher. The heat and thorough action from the dishwasher's mechanism is practically guaranteed to kill any bacteria on your contact lenses.

3. A simpler way to sterilize your contact lenses with heat is to place your contact lens cases in a pot of boiling water in your kitchen for 5 to 10 minutes.

Always make sure that you are not only sterilizing the cases, but also the caps. Be thorough and regular in your contact lens case cleaning. If you don't trust yourself to do so, simply invest in several inexpensive cases and replace them often.

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