Find Contact Lenses in St. Albert with Dr. Holly Parker
See great and look wonderful with contact lenses! St. Albert patients of Dr. Holly Parker and St. Albert Vision Care have a number of options for ditching those frames. If you've been considering contacts, you'll be happy to learn that wearing contacts isn't just about your appearance, but improving your vision as well.
With contact lenses, you can have a more natural field of vision and less visual distortion since these lenses move with the eyes. Contact lenses also won't “fog up” on humid days and you won't have to worry about cleaning away the spots after a walk in the rain. Contacts are also excellent options for those participating in sports, exercise, and other physical activities.
But, contact lenses also require a more thorough eye exam to ensure they meet the patient's vision correction needs. Plus, contact lenses don’t mean “maintenance-free” lenses; contacts do necessitate some degree of regular care in order to protect your eyesight and investment. Like eyeglasses, contacts require regular cleaning, a proper storage technique, as well as regular follow-ups with your optometrist. Even disposables require patients to follow a replacement and follow-up schedule.
During eye exam appointments for contact lenses, our patients are presented with a number of contact lens options. You can read about the many types of contact lenses that are now available by reading through the descriptions on this page. If you have a question, or would like to schedule an appointment, please feel free to contact us today.
Rigid Gas-Permeable Contact Lenses
As organs, your eyes require time to "breathe" and receive oxygen. Gas-permeable contact lenses feature a semi-flexible plastic membrane that allows oxygen to pass through to the surface of the eyes. Not only are these comfortable to wear, but they also shorten the time it takes for patients to adjust to their unique feel. Rigid gas-permeable lenses are relatively easy to care for and should provide long-term use. But, because semi-permeable lenses do not create an airtight suction, they can slip away from the centre of the eye more easily than other types of contacts.
Daily Soft Contact Lenses
Soft contact lenses are available for daily use. While they do come as bifocals and in various tints, daily-wear lenses will not correct every type of vision disorder that we diagnose in our office. And, because of the softened materials, these contact lenses may not provide the same level of sharpness found in rigid gas-permeable contact lenses. Their flexibility means they will also wear out more quickly compared to RGPs and will therefore require more frequent replacement.
Extended-Use Contact Lenses
Yes, there are actually contact lenses that you can wear overnight and for extended periods of time! These are available in both soft and rigid-gas permeable varieties that can be worn up to a whole month. Extended-used lenses do require regular visits with an optometrist to avoid the increased complication risks.
Disposable Extended-Wear Contact Lenses
These soft-style lenses can be worn for up to six days, at which point they should be discarded. These contacts do come in bifocal styles, but may not be ideal in correcting all types of ocular issues. Although, there are disposables available that can be worn for up to 30 days. By shortening the wear time, there is also a reduced risk of eye infection when compared to 30 day extended-use contacts.
Soft Planned Replacement (Daily-Wear) Contact Lenses
As planned replacements, these types of soft contact lenses can be replaced on a bi-weekly, monthly, or quarterly basis. Your replacement schedule will be determined by consulting with your optometrist.
As they can be worn for extended periods, the process of cleaning and disinfecting these soft-style lenses is reduced. As with all soft contact lenses, these may not offer the same level of clarity offered by their more rigid counterparts, and may not be ideal at resolving all vision problems.
Schedule a Consultation
To see which style of contact lens is right for you, contact St. Albert Vision Centre to schedule a consultation with optometrist Dr. Holly Parker.
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