My contacts dry my eyes out
Have you been wearing contact lenses comfortably for years, but now your eyes feel dry, scratchy and irritated? You’re in good company. Many people who wear contact lenses will suddenly experience uncomfortable or painful symptoms – often caused by dry eyes. Yet this isn’t a reason to remove your lenses forever. Advanced eye care products, a lifestyle change, or a new type of lenses may solve your problem. At Shirley Eye Care, we’re experienced in helping to restore comfortable vision to contact lens wearers with dry eyes. We’ll perform a thorough eye exam in our Indiana, Pennsylvania office to determine what’s causing your condition, and then we’ll offer effective relief.
Effects of Contacts on Tear Lipids
Scientific studies have demonstrated that the layer of lipids in your natural tear film may be altered by wearing contact lenses. Your eyes’ normal tear film is composed of three layers of nourishing fluids. The outermost layer consists of lipids, which are fatty, waxy molecules that help prevent tears from evaporating. These lipids coat your eyes and preserve the stability of your tear film. In many contact lens wearers who have ocular discomfort, it was discovered that this lipid layer suffered more degradation.
Less Lipids Can Lead to Dry Eyes
A layer of aqueous fluids is beneath the fatty surface layer of your tear film. Therefore, without a supple layer of lipids, your eyes are at risk of drying out more quickly. This is one reason why the incidence of dry eyes is higher among contact lens wearers – especially after you’ve been wearing lenses for a while.
Restore Comfort to Wearing Contact Lenses
The most appropriate treatment depends upon the severity of your symptoms. Contact us for an appointment in our Indiana, Creekside, Ernest Penn Run & Lucerne Mines, Pennsylvania, clinic, and our eye doctors will assess your eyes. In addition to a detailed eye examination, we’ll want to know about your symptoms, general lifestyle and visual needs.
If your discomfort and dry eyes are only occasional, we may recommend over-the-counter eye drops or artificial tears. As all eye drops are not compatible with all types of lenses, it’s important to follow our recommendations on which product to use. If your eyes are painful constantly when wearing contacts, we may prescribe a new type or material of lenses.
Liposomal Eyelid Spray
Many liposome sprays are available as a treatment for dry eyes. These eyelid sprays can help decrease the drying of your tear film. As a result, pain due to wearing contacts with dry eyes is alleviated. Studies demonstrate how these sprays can efficiently stabilize your tear film and improve the healthy composition of your eye lipids.
Dry eyes and uncomfortable symptoms are not a reason to throw out your contact lenses! Your first step should be a visit to our Indiana optometrist for an eye exam to rule out any other serious, underlying eye problems. Once the cause of your discomfort is determined, we’ll work with you patiently to find the best solution. Contact our office for an appointment today.
Contact Lens Consultation in Indiana, Creekside, Ernest Penn Run & Lucerne Mines, Pennsylvania
Our eye doctors will begin with a discussion about your lifestyle, visual requirements and preferences for contact lenses. We appreciate each patient as an individual, and we’ll listen to your expectations and answer your questions.
Some considerations you may have when choosing contacts:
- Do you want lenses for every day, or just for certain occasions or activities?
- Do you want to change your eye color?
- How frequently do you want to replace your contacts? There are daily wear options or extended wear lenses.
- Do you prefer soft or hard lenses? Soft lenses are most popular, but hard lenses have their advantages. They offer high oxygen permeability, provide crisp vision and are durable.
Your Contact Lens Fitting in Indiana, Pennsylvania
After a comprehensive exam of your eye health and vision by Dr. Matthew Shirley, we’ll measure your eyes for contact lenses. There are many corneal variations, and one size of contacts doesn’t fit all eyes. We will measure:
- Corneal curvature: Using a keratometer, we’ll find the curvature of your cornea, which is needed to choose the best diameter and curve for your contacts. Corneal mapping is also sometimes used to provide a highly detailed image of your cornea. If you have an irregular corneal surface due to astigmatism, you may need toric lenses, available in hard and soft versions.
- Iris and pupil size: Using either a basic ruler or template, or a specialized lighted tool called a slit lamp, we will measure your iris and pupils. These sizes will help us to determine the best contact lens design for you.
- Evaluation of your tear film: Sufficient moisture is needed on your cornea in order to keep your eyes and contact lenses well lubricated. With dry eyes, contact lens wearing may not be suitable. We will perform this test either by placing a strip of paper on your lower eyelid to measure moisture, or by using liquid dye and a slit lamp to see your tears.
Indiana, Trial Contact lenses
The best way to confirm the ideal contact lenses for you is by using trial lenses. Contact lenses will be inserted and our eye doctor will use a slit lamp to check the position and movement of your contacts. You’ll be asked to blink and move your gaze in all directions and to provide feedback about how the contacts feel. Trial wearing time is generally about 15 minutes, and then if the contact lenses feel good and appear to fit well, you’ll be instructed on how to care for them. We will provide you with guidelines on how long to wear them, as well as information on proper care and handling.
Your Indiana,contact lens prescription
Once we find lenses for you that provide clear vision, fit properly and feel good, we’ll issue a prescription, which includes:
- Power of each contact lens
- Lens curvature (base curve)
- Lens diameter
- Manufacturer and name of the lenses
Follow-up visits
After your initial fitting, we’ll provide follow-up visits in Indiana, Creekside, Ernest Penn Run & Lucerne Mines, Pennsylvania. Our optometrists will verify that your eyes are healthy, with quality vision and no damage from the lenses. If needed, we’ll change the materials or fit of your contacts, or you may be advised to change your wearing time. If everything is good, you should schedule a routine yearly exam to make sure that nothing has changed with your eyes and eyesight.
Our team of experienced optometrists will use many different testing procedures to check your eyes. Our Indiana, office is fully equipped with the latest equipment. To determine visual acuity, you will be asked to read a standard eye chart and we will check refractive error. To diagnose or rule out any eye diseases, we will inspect your inner eye tissues with a high-powered lens. This exam also provides significant information about your overall health.
For more information about comprehensive eye examinations Call Shirley Eye Care on (724) 790-2020 in Indiana, Pennsylvania to schedule an eye exam with our optometrist, Dr. Matthew Shirley.
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