Extended Wear Contact Lenses: Do You Need Them?

Contact lens technology has developed quite well over the last decade. With more manufacturing capabilities, there are now different types of contact lenses that you can choose from—each with its own unique features! For example, you can now buy extended wear contact lenses that you can use for a couple of days straight!

What Are Extended Wear Contact Lenses?

Extended wear contact lenses are special lenses that you can wear for very long periods of time. Generally, normal lenses can only be used for around 14 to 16 hours per day—that’s if you don’t feel any discomfort within that time frame.

As for extended wear lenses, you can wear them continuously for a whole week. There are even more advanced lenses that you can wear for a month without removing them.

Different Types of Contact Lenses

Before we dig deeper into the amazing features of extended wear contact lenses, we need to establish the basics. For this reason, we’ve prepared a list of the different types of lenses that you can get:

Disposable Contact Lenses – As its name suggests, disposable lenses are meant to be thrown away after use. This means that you can only use them for a full day before permanently discarding them.

Because you’re using a fresh pair of lenses each time, most physicians consider disposable lenses to be very safe for your eyes. Put simply, disposable lenses remove the risk of eye problems that generally occur from overusing contact lenses.
Daily Wear Lenses – Daily wear lenses are probably the most common type of lens right now. These are reusable contact lenses that can last for a few weekends to a few months. It all depends on the brand and quality of the specific lenses that you buy.

This type of lens requires a little bit of maintenance because you need to disinfect them every night. However, these lenses are very affordable, and keeping them clean is actually very easy once you get used to them.
Extended Wear Contact Lenses – As previously mentioned, extended wear lenses can be used for days without the need for removal.

Unlike daily wear lenses, extended-wear contacts can be worn overnight even when you sleep. Although, we highly recommend that you avoid sleeping with your lenses if your environment permits it.

Do You Need Extended Wear Contact Lenses?

The best contact lenses depend entirely on what you personally need. When it comes to choosing lenses, you should always consider your optical needs and lifestyle before anything else.

First of all, you need to get a pair of contact lenses that provide the functionality that you’re looking for—corrective lenses or colored contacts, it’s up to what your eyes need. Next, you need a pair of lenses that can keep up or complement your lifestyle.

For example, people who have no time to clean their lenses every night are better suited for disposable lenses. In contrast, daily wear lenses require more care but are much more affordable.

Check out this list of reasons why extended wear contact lenses would suit you:

Extremely Active Lifestyle or Career – Some people don’t have the luxury to properly clean their lenses each night. For example, military professionals or people on emergency duty may prefer to have contact lenses on 24/7.

If you do need to use contact lenses nonstop, you should still try to find time to remove them. Though extended wear lenses are designed for continuous use, there are still risks to wearing them without rest.

However, if you are really in need of reliable lenses, then extended wear contact lenses could be your best option.
Special Vision Problems – There are a number of people who suffer from rare vision problems that may require extended lenses.

For example, people with binocular vision may prefer to use extended wear lenses to help increase the quality of their life. If you suffer from a specific condition and you think that extended wear lenses can help you, you should consult a doctor before purchasing.

Extended wear contact lenses are still prone to cause eye problems which could worsen your vision problem. With this in mind, it’s best to consult a trusted eye doctor whenever your plan on changing your prescribed ocular accessories.
Significantly Terrible Vision – Common refractive errors like myopia and hyperopia can affect certain people more significantly. If you suffer from extremely bad vision, you may rely on corrective lenses more often than others do.

For this type of case, using a reliable pair of eyeglasses should do the trick. However, an extended wear contact lens can also act as a viable substitute for your needs. Just make sure you consult an eye physician about this and practice good lens-care habits.

Risks of Using Extended Wear Contact Lenses

From corrective lenses to cosmetic colored contacts, all contact lenses come with certain risks. Despite millions of people using contact lenses, contacts are still medical accessories that should be handled with care and responsibility.

Think about it. Your contact lenses sit directly on your eyes for long periods of time. This means that wearing mishandled or contaminated lenses could easily harm your eyes and ruin your vision. In fact, serious eye infections could lead to permanent vision loss and even blindness.

Here are some of the risks that you should consider before buying a pair of extended wear contact lenses:

Dry Eyes – Losing moisture in your eyes is one of the most common problems of wearing contacts for too long. Though extended wear lenses are designed for longer use, the chances of your eyes drying out are still very prevalent.

Dry eyes aren’t generally risky, however, this can lead to serious eye damage if left unattended. Put simply, dry eyes could be the catalyst for worse contact lens problems to arise.
Corneal Scratches – As mentioned above, dry eyes can cause problems to your eyes. Your lenses can start to scratch your cornea if your eyes aren’t moist enough.

When this happens, you can expect your eyes to feel painful. Luckily, eye scratches generally heal by themselves within a few days. However, we still recommend that you see a doctor just to be sure.
Irritation and Pain – There are many types of eye pains and irritations that can occur when you wear contact lenses. Unlike eyeglasses, your lenses sit directly on your eyes.

This means that prolonged use of contacts increases the risk of eye irritation. With this in mind, you should remove your lenses immediately whenever you feel any discomfort.

Remember, prevention is better than cure so you might as well play safe.
Eye Infection – Your contact lenses are not immune to germs and bacteria. As a result, prolonged exposure to open environments increases the risk of your lenses becoming contaminated.

In fact, there are many ocular diseases that come from water so you should never swim with your lenses on.
Lack of Oxygen – Contact lenses have a natural tendency to block oxygen from fully reaching your eyes. As a result, prolonged use of lenses can potentially lead to corneal hypoxia.

This issue could lead to blindness so you should be very careful when using extended wear contact lenses.

How to Reduce Risks When Using Extended Wear Contact Lenses

If you really need to use extended wear contact lenses, you need to be very careful with your eyes. Extended wear comes with certain risks that you should never take lightly. Luckily, there are a few simple ways that you can minimize the risk of developing eye problems.

1. Remove your lenses from time to time

Just because you can use extended wear lenses continuously doesn’t mean that you always should. Try giving your eyes a break from your lenses whenever your can. Even a few minutes with your lenses smothering your eyes will do you much good.

2. Wash your lenses whenever you can

Keeping your lenses clean should be your top most priority. After all, wearing filthy lenses could lead you to some serious eye problems. Even if you have to keep your lenses on for days on end, don’t forget to bring your lens-care kit. You never know when an opportunity to wash your lens arises, right?

3. Keep track of time

People have a tendency to forget about their lenses when they’ve gotten too used to wearing them. Primarily for extended wear contact lens users, this habit is one that should be avoided. Keeping track of your lens-wear time can help you assess the status and comfortability of your eyes better.

4. Avoid sleeping with your lenses on

Though extended wear lenses are designed for this situation, it’s still best to avoid doing it if possible. Sleeping with your contact lenses is bad and extended wear lenses are no exception. Remember, it’s better to play safe than to end up with vision problems.

5. Don’t swim with your lenses

There are lots of micro organisms that live in water. This means that getting your lenses wet could potentially contaminate them. So if you don’t want to get an eye infection, you better stay away from water. Additionally, you should also refrain from using water to wash your lenses!

Final Thoughts

Extended wear contact lenses aren’t as popular as daily wear lenses for a reason. First of all, there are many risks that come from wearing contact lenses for too long—even for extended wear contacts.

However, for people who have limited options, extended wear lenses are still viable tools for certain types of situations.

Remember, contact lenses are generally safe to use as long as you follow the right guidelines. And if you plan on using extended wear lenses, it’s best to consult with an eye doctor first.

Your doctor will have a better idea on what is best for your ocular needs than anyone else. FInally, you should also explore other types of contacts like cosmetic colored contact lenses for fun!