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Although contact lenses have been around for more than a century, the past decade has seen tremendous developments in lens materials and design to bring even greater benefits to contact lens wearers.
Today almost all eyesight problems can be corrected with contact lenses. Despite advances in spectacle technology and the advent of surgical techniques such as laser refractive surgery, contact lenses provide many advantages and are a very successful form of vision correction. New manufacturing technology has also made contact lenses more affordable than ever before.
That’s why more than 3.5 million people in the UK wear contact lenses and the number of wearers has more than doubled in recent years (see ‘Facts and stats on the UK contact lens market).
Below are some more advantages of the various types of contact lenses when compared to spectacles and refractive surgery are given in the following table (courtesy of Professor Nathan Efron and Optician).
Ask your BCLA contact lens practitioner to help you decide which type is best suited to your needs
A comparison of different forms of vision correction
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Characteristic
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Soft lenses
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Rigid lenses
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Orthokeratology
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Spectacle lenses
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Refractive surgery
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Field of view
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full
|
full
|
full
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restricted
|
full
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Stability of vision (post blink)
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excellent
|
good
|
excellent
|
excellent
|
excellent
|
|
Glare
|
none
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in low light
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none
|
none
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Some post- surgery
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|
Glare protection tint possible
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cosmetic only
|
no
|
no
|
yes
|
n/a
|
|
UV protection possible
|
yes
|
yes
|
no
|
yes
|
n/a
|
|
Initial comfort
|
good
|
poor
|
fair
|
good
|
fair
|
|
Long term comfort
|
good
|
good
|
excellent
|
good
|
excellent
|
|
Adaptation required
|
very little
|
yes
|
yes
|
sometimes
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n/a
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Suitability for intermittent use
|
yes
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not usually
|
no
|
yes
|
no
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Disposability viable
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yes
|
no
|
n/a
|
no
|
n/a
|
|
Risk of loss
|
low
|
moderate
|
n/a
|
low
|
n/a
|
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Risk of dislodgement during wear
|
low
|
moderate
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nil
|
high
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n/a
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Risk of damage during wear
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low
|
low
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nil
|
high
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Moderate (Lasik flap mislocation)
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Risk of damage with handling
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high
|
low
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low
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low
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n/a
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Ease of care
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simple
(nil for daily disposable)
|
simple
|
simple
|
simple
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n/a
|
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Initial cost
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low
|
moderate
|
high
|
moderate
|
high
|
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Ongoing costs
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high
|
moderate
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moderate
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none
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nil
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Cost to correct astigmatism
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high
|
low
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only limited correction possible
|
low
|
high
|
|
Bifocal correction possible
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compromise
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very difficult
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no
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yes
|
monovision
|
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Use in rain
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good
|
good
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excellent
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poor
|
good
|
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Susceptibility to fog up
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no
|
no
|
no
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yes
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no
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Susceptibility to dirt up
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no
|
no
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no
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yes
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no
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Risk of complication
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low
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negligible
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low
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none
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moderate
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n/a not applicable
Here are our Top 10 reasons for wearing contact lenses:
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Contact lenses offer natural all-round vision and enhance your appearance
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Contact lenses are simple and convenient to use and expand lifestyle choices
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Contact lenses have many advantages for sport and leisure activities
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Contact lenses can be worn every day, part-time or just for going out and special occasions
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Vision with contact lenses can be as good, or better than with spectacles
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Contact lenses offer a safe, effective, stable, and reversible alternative to refractive surgery
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Contact lenses can correct almost all eyesight problems and are suitable for people of all ages
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Adaptation to contact lenses is rapid and trouble-free
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The latest contact lenses and solutions provide excellent comfort and eye health
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Some eye conditions can only be corrected with contact lenses
Inormation from: http://www.bcla.org.uk/en/consumers/consumer-guide-to-contact-lenses/benefits-of-contact-lenses.cfm
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