Jun 12, 2008

THE EYE MAN: Choosing the best contact solution for your type of lens

By Andrew Soss / Daily News Columnist

Dr. Soss

I read with interest your column on May 29 in the Palo Alto Daily News, suggesting solutions are a key item for comfortable contact lens wearing. My gas-permeable rigid lenses have a film on them which I'm having difficulty removing. I'm using Boston Advance cleaner at least twice daily and Boston conditioning solution. Do you have other suggestions for removing the film and regular solutions to use? Thank you so much!

L.Z.



L.Z.,

The article you are referring to was primarily directed at patients who wear soft contact lenses. Solutions have a different type of effect with soft lenses than with your type of hard gas-permeable lenses. The reason is that soft lenses act like little sponges, absorbing and storing all types of products and chemicals inside the lens itself. However, rigid gas-permeable lenses can only have chemicals on the surface, which typically are easy to remove. Yes, some of the solutions for gas-permeable contact lenses can create adverse reactions in certain individual patients. However, the problem you are describing to me is extremely common, and typically has nothing to do with your solutions.

The "film" that you describe is most likely associated with how you handle and store your lenses, which are probably at least 4-6 months old, if not older. There is an old saying, "Water and oil do not mix." For whatever reason, eye doctors and patients alike tend to be oblivious to this ancient information. When your contact lenses are removed from your eyes at the end of the day, they must be cleaned with a cleaner that removes debris from the surface of the lenses. The cleaner should be rinsed off the lens. Additionally, and at least as important, the contact lens must be thoroughly dried before being placed in its storage case along with the "oily" storage solution. If you do not thoroughly dry the water off your contact lenses, you will create an oil/water "sludge." Over time, if the lenses are not properly cleaned and stored, the surface will develop a filmy substance that will be extremely difficult to remove. I have found that sometimes the filmy substance you are describing can be removed with liquid Ivory dishwashing soap. If this does not work, you may have to replace the lenses. Certainly, you should not have the lenses polished, because it will ruin the specially treated wettable surface.



Questions to Dr. Soss should be sent to his e-mail theeyedoctor@att.net or via his Web site at www.dr-andrewsoss.com. All answers and opinions are those of Dr. Soss and not necessarily shared, endorsed or affiliated with this or any of our newspaper agencies.

Dr. Andrew C. Soss, OD, FAAO, has been practicing for over 20 years. During that time he has been a clinical instructor in the department of ocular pathology at the University of California. As a primary eye care provider in private practice in Burlingame, he is also board certified in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of primary open angle glaucoma.