BCLA :: Lens wearing schedules and the need for cleaning

Everyone has a different lifestyle and to reflect this, there are different wearing schedules for contact lenses:

Daily Disposable Lenses
These soft contact lenses are worn for a day and then thrown away. The is no need for solutions to clean them, although it is worth having some saline (sterile water solution) to rinse them once they have been temporarily removed should the eye become irritated. Under no circumstances should these lenses be used for more than a day without serious risk of an eye infection. The lenses are usually more expensive than other lens wearing schedules if worn every day, but they are ideal for sport and occasional wear. Only wearing the lenses for a day reduces the exposure of the eyes to debris and no cleaning prevents the possibility of a toxicity reaction.

Two Weekly / Monthly Lenses
These soft contact lenses are worn daily for up to a month and must be removed each night and cleaned with the solutions recommended by your contact lens practitioner. They are now the most popular form of soft lenses. More speciality lenses such as those to change the apparent colour of the eye and to correct astigmatism are available in form.

Yearly Lenses
This schedule of soft contact lens wear is becoming less common although some speciality lenses are usually available in this form. The lenses must be removed each night and cleaned with the solutions recommended by your contact lens practitioner.

Rigid contact lenses usually last approximately one year and require cleaning with the solutions recommended by your contact lens practitioner.