Individuals who have poor eyesight wake up in the morning searching for their glasses. Extended wear contact lenses are the perfect choice if you want to wake up with clear vision.
There are two categories of contact lenses: daily wear and extended wear. Daily wear is the lens that you need to remove before sleeping while extended wear is the one that you can wear overnight.
The extended wear contacts are made of silicone hydrogel material which makes them thinner than the daily wear lenses. The advised days of continuous wear depend on the recommendation of your eye doctor but for most, it is up to seven days for most extended wear contact lenses.
Some people cannot wear extended wear contacts overnight and for a long period. The eye doctor will discuss during contact lens fitting if you are a candidate to wear EW contacts overnight.
Risk of Eye Infection in Extended Wear Contacts
Research showed that the risk of eye infections is higher for the people who sleep with contact lenses on. Wearing it for a whole day poses a great risk because microorganisms can get trapped in the lens and can infect your eyes.
The oxygen supply in the cornea is reduced when you wear contact lenses which means you are susceptible to corneal infections.
Acanthamoeba keratitis is a serious infection that you can get from contact lenses. Permanent vision loss is the worst-case scenario if you have a fungal eye infection.
Over the years, the risk has been reduced by the advancement in the materials used for extended wear contact lens such as the following:
- It is made of silicone hydrogel materials that do not reduce the oxygen supply to the cornea.
- Extended wear contacts are disposable which means it is meant to be discarded after one to four weeks of use.
- It is available in rigid gas permeable (RGP) materials which decrease the risk of acquiring infection from debris trapped under the lens.
Eye care professionals recommend flexible wear of extended wear contacts to reduce the risk of continuous wear. In using flexible wear, it can be worn overnight but not every day like daytime naps.
Alternatives Available
For safety, remove lenses daily to decrease the risk of eye infection. It is recommended to wear disposable contact lenses than other lenses. It may not be convenient as extended wear lenses but safety is the greatest priority.
Surgical vision correction is another viable alternative but you should be at least 18 years old. See professional care when you think there is a problem while you wear EW contact lenses overnight.
