Soft contact lenses?!
Question: what happens if you leave in daily wear contacts for over a year...the kind i have are colored and were to be good for a year only...i've been wearing them daily for like a year and 6mos...am i in grave danger?
Answers: what happens if you leave in daily wear contacts for over a year...the kind i have are colored and were to be good for a year only...i've been wearing them daily for like a year and 6mos...am i in grave danger?
I wouldn't say "grave danger" the problem is that over time proteins from your eyes build up on your contacts and begin to affect their ability to "breathe". You should get a new pair (and I really hope you've been taking them out to sleep and cleaning them well each night). Depending on the amount of build up you can get an infection in your eye which would require the use of steroid eye drops for several weeks.
I agree you aren't in grave danger but you should be replacing them as soon as you can. I wore those same kind of contacts for about 10 years before I switched to disposables after seeing a new optometrist. The new doctor told me about the protein build-up problem and that disposables are more standard now. Until you can get a new pair be sure you take them out and clean them well every night. You can buy drops to put in your storage case that will help remove excess protein build up at drug stores.
I do not believe you are in any kind of danger but it is important to properly take care of your lenses and you should definitley follow your doctor's advice on the wear time. Below is some steps that you should take in order to avoid any problems with your contacts and ultimately your eyes.
1. Probably the single most important task to do before handling contact lenses is to properly wash and rinse your hands. Hands are used to handle many different objects through out the course of a day; therefore they are incredibly susceptible to debris and germs. If your hands have debris or germs they could contaminate your lenses or worse yet your eyes. It is important to also rinse your hands after washing them in order to avoid any soap residue from rubbing off on to your contact lenses.
2. It is important to use the appropriate solution when rinsing your contact lenses. Follow the instructions carefully while cleaning and rinsing your lenses, some solutions require different steps.
3. When you are done using your contact lenses it is important to make sure that your contact lens case/container is free of any debris. Fill the case with the recommended disinfectant solution in order to kill any microorganisms that could be on your lenses. By following this last step you could avoid any risk of eye infection.
You can also visit the following site to get informaiton on eye topics.
http://www.contactlensking.com/eyehealth...
You can also go to the following links to read product information on colored contact lenses. Hopefully this helps answer your question.
http://www.contactlensking.com/focus1to2...
http://www.contactlensking.com/focusmont...
http://www.contactlensking.com/freshlook...
http://www.contactlensking.com/freshlook...
http://www.contactlensking.com/freshlook...
http://www.contactlensking.com/expressio...
http://www.contactlensking.com/acuvue2co...
http://www.contactlensking.com/acuvue2co...
I have been working as a receptionist in an optometrist's office for almost a year now. During my time, I have come to realize that there are very FEW people who are responsible contact lens wearers.
Let me guess, you came in for a contact lens examination and got a free, TRIAL, pair of colored lenses. You never came back for a contact lens check and you NEVER even bought boxes.
Sound right? We get so many of these people. Every once in a while, they come back with an infection and we get to reviewing their chart and find out they've been wearing the same lens for FAR too long.
Do people not even care about the health of their eyes? Sure, it's not your heart or lungs, something that keeps you ticking, but when you cause yourself to go blind, or have vision loss (it can happen due to infections!), you can't get it back! So I would be more responsible with the eyes God gave you!
ANYWAY, you can cause damage to your eyes. Your eyes require oxygen just like the rest of your body and if you are wearing contact lenses for an extended amount of time (especially without taking them out at night), it can cause infections or WORSE.
Also, even if you wear contacts like Focus Night and Days that allow you to sleep in them (they allow more oxygen to get to your eye), it is still best to take them out for a day or two to give your eyes a break. They are only good UP TO 30 days. Everyone's eyes are different and some people probably have more protein build-up than others and it needs to be cleaned.