Contact lenses are meant to provide crystal clear vision but soon after a few wears they start to become hazy. It is important to rinse contact lenses after each wear as every time you wear your contacts, they are coated with protein that transfers from your tear film. There are several solutions available in the pharmacy that claim to remove protein and lipid buildup in order to maintain crisp vision. Although it could be daunting at first to select a contact lens care regimen, talking with your doctor significantly helps.
What is the Best Solution to Remove Protein Buildup from Contact Lenses?
Multi-purpose solution is a one bottle ‘no-rub’ cleaning regimen that replaces cleaning and rinsing solutions. As mentioned by name it helps removing debris by breaking down protein & lipid. It does not only clean & rinse your contact lenses but also fight against bacterial accumulation. However a multi-purpose solution contains preservatives which is sometimes not very friendly to some patients. They are advised to use hydrogen peroxide solution as it is preservative free.
What is Hydrogen Peroxide Solution?
Hydrogen peroxide solution is used to clean, rinse & disinfect contact lenses but it is not a one step process. Since this chemical can cause serious burns and injuries to your cornea, you must never put your lenses directly in to your eyes after rinsing with hydrogen peroxide. It requires a neutralizing process to make your lenses wearable again.
Hydrogen peroxide often comes with a special case featuring a neutralizer basket. It contains a built in disc that breakdown hydrogen per oxide molecules into water and oxygen making it safe for you to wear contacts. With other cases, you may need neutralising tablets which further adds a step to your daily cleansing routine.
What is Saline Solution?
Saline solution is a solution of distilled water and salt. It safely rinses and store your lenses but can neither clean your lenses from protein buildup nor disinfect them from bacterial contamination. It keeps your lenses hydrated while you store in your lenses but you must follow with other solutions to disinfect your contact lenses.
What are the Different Cleaning Devices for Contact Lenses?
Cleaning devices rinse and disinfect contact lenses. There are a variety of devices available, each engineered slightly different and have often more to offer than the other. They make use of ultrasonic sound waves or subsonic agitation where disinfection occurs by multi-purpose contact lens solution or ultraviolet light.
Run on batteries, some of the cleaning devices create an abrasive reaction and produce sound during the disinfection process whereas other devices that could be slightly expensive make no sound and comparatively clean contact lenses more effectively. As per studies it is suggested that ultrasonic waves impact the lens structure adversely hence reduces the life span of contacts. Cleaning machine like 3N cleaner effectively removes impurities of all kind and protein debris within 30 seconds. It makes no noise & help protect your contact lenses from the damage.
