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Cleaning Contact Lenses
Contact Lenses must be cleaned effectively to keep them healthy, comfortable, and providing good vision.
There are many contact lens solutions on the market today. Some of them are brand names. Others are store brand or generics. The solutions are not all the same. In fact, there are very large differences between the many solutions. Recently, two very popular solutions were taken off of the market because each one was ineffective against a different micro-organism. This shows how different they can be.
For soft contact lenses, these are the main solutions on the market:
Multi-Purpose
Opti-Free Replenish by Alcon
Aquify by Ciba
Complete by AMO
Renu by Bausch and Lomb
Several Generic or Store Brands
Peroxide Based
Clear Care by Ciba
Ultra Care by AMO
For RGP contacts
Multi-Purpose
Unique PH by Alcon
Boston Simplus by Bausch and Lomb
Daily Cleaners such as
Boston Original
Boston Advanced
Lobob
Solutions are not all equal. Opti-Free replenish has performed exceptionally well. Aquify, while not as popular, has also performed very well. Complete is a brand new solution on the market. Their previous solution was recalled because it was ineffective against Acanthamoeba Keratitis. The new solution is effective against Acanthamoeba, and is a very comfortable solution. Renu Moistureloc was recalled because it was ineffective against Fusarium Keratitis. The current Renu, is the previous Renu, before moistureloc. The generic solutions are generally even older versions of Renu. The Renu formulas have shown problems with corneal staining. At this time we do not recommend Renu, or any of the generic solutions on the market. This corneal staining can cause eye irritation, and could lead to infections.
The most effective solution on the market is Clear Care by Ciba. It is a hydrogen peroxide based solution. The solution can not go into the eye directly. It cannot be used to rinse the solution after the cleaning process. The cleaning process must be followed exactly for this solution to be effective and not cause eye irritation. The case that comes with the solution has a catalist that converts hydrogen peroxide into water over a 6-8 hour period of time. The contact lenses are placed into the chambers for the appropriate eye. The solution is placed into the container up to the line. The cap, with the contact lenses, is screwed on, and the solution with contacts is left on the counter for 6-8 hours, or overnight. Bubbles will form rapidly as the peroxide is converted into water at the beginning. This will slow down after an hour or two, but the peroxide will not be fully converted for 6-8 hours. At the end of this 6-8 hour period, the contact lenses are sitting in pure saline solution, as the peroxide is not water. You can put the lenses directly in the eye at this point. Clear Care is very effective as a disinfectant and cleaner. The lenses tend to be very comfortable and fresh after a night in Clear Care. Do not rinse the lenses with clear care at this point, or they will have peroxide back on them. Clear Care stings the eye, and will cause severe redness. It does not cause permenent damage. Still, if you get a lot in the eye, you would likely want to come in for an evaluation.
For those who prefer to not use a peroxide based cleaner, Opti-Free replenish, Aquify, or Complete are very effective. These solutions should all be used with a rubbing step. Remove contact from the eye, and place contact lens in the palm of the hand. Pour a generous amount of solution on the contact lens. Rub it with the fleshy part of your index finger for 30 seconds, and then rinse the lens off with more fresh solution. The lens should then be placed in the clean case, with fresh solution about 2/3 to 3/4 of the way filled up. Put the cap on and repeat for the other eye. For proper cleaning and disinfection, it is important to be generous with the solution as you go through each step. It is also very important that the case was rinsed and allowed to air dry. Never top off the solution. Previously used solution is not as effective, and has been linked with very serious eye infections.
RGP solutions that are multipurpose and very effective are Boston Simplus and Unique PH. They should be used in the same manner as the soft lens multipurpose solutions. It is important that plenty of solution is also used at insertion, as the lens needs to be nicely conditioned for comfort upon insertion. Clear care may also be used with RGP's. In the past, peroxide based formulas have been shown to make RGP's brittle. Clear Care has not been shown to have this problem, but I would recommend not using it daily. Weekly or monthly use could give the contacts a deep cleaning.