Sunglasses and Cosmetic Contact Lenses

This category contains all sunglasses, fashion non prescription glasses and coloured cosmetic non prescription soft multi-use contact lenses. Other Items may include non prescription monocles, spectacles, binoculars or any other optical fashion item.


Important Health Advice


All items in this category are purely fashion and cosmetic in nature. Decorative items such as these will not substitute and are not intended for medical use or to gain any form of aid whatsoever.

If you require prescription glasses, contacts, or any form of optometrist aid for vision do NOT purchase items for your own use in this category. It is highly recommended you have your eyes checked by a qualified optometrist to confirm these products will be suitable for use before purchasing. It is your responsibility to ensure you are purchasing an item that is suitable for your personal health.

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What Wiki Has To Say About Cosmetic Contact Lenses.....

Usage
Before touching the contact lens or one's eyes, it is important to thoroughly wash & rinse hands with a soap that does not contain moisturizers or allergens such as fragrances. The soap should not be antibacterial due to risk of improper hand washing and the possibility of destroying the natural bacteria found on the eye. These bacteria keep pathogenic bacteria from colonizing the cornea. The technique for removing or inserting a contact lens varies slightly depending upon whether the lens is soft or rigid.
In all cases, the insertion and removal of lenses requires some training and practice on the part of the user, in part to overcome the instinctual hesitation against actually touching the eyeball with one's fingertip.
Insertion


Inserting a contact lens
Contact lenses are typically inserted into the eye by placing them on the index finger with the concave side upward and raising them to touch the cornea. The other hand may be employed to keep the eye open. Problems may arise particularly with disposable soft lenses; if the surface tension between the lens and the finger is too great the lens may turn itself inside out; alternatively it may fold itself in half. When the lens first contacts the eye, a brief period of irritation may ensue as the eye acclimatizes to the lens and also (if a multi-use lens is not correctly cleansed) as dirt on the lens irritates the eye. Irrigation may help during this period, which generally should not exceed one minute. It may be noted that although with some types of contact lenses it is easy to tell if you have inserted the lens backwards (as it is usually painful and vision is impaired) you are able to determine the lens's correct position beforehand by holding the lens on the tip of your finger and squeezing the bottom of it with two fingers from your other hand, you will know you have it the correct way if the edges of the lens curve inward like a taco. If they curve out you need to flip the lens. With some types of lenses however, this is difficult as both sides look very much the same. With many lenses it is hard to tell whether they are inside out or not even when they are in the eye itself. This is because the vision and feel of the lens can be very similar for both sides. For these reasons many people try to ensure they keep visual track of the different sides of the contact lenses from the day they are open, if they suspect the lens is inside out they can always change its orientation at a later stage. It is never advisable to wear the lenses inside-out even if they feel comfortable and vision is good when doing so.

Removal
A soft lens may be removed by holding the eyelids open and grasping the lens with opposing digits. This method may cause irritation, could risk damage to the eye and may in many cases be difficult, in part due to the blink reflex. If the lens is pushed off the cornea (by touching the lens with your forefinger and looking towards your nose, moving the lens) it will buckle up (due to the difference in curvature), making it easier to grasp.
As an alternative method to grasping, once the lens is moved off the cornea to the inner corner of the eye, it can be pushed out of the eye by pressing downwards on the upper eyelid with a finger. With this method there is less risk of touching the eye with the fingers, and it may be easier for people with long fingernails.
Rigid contact lenses may be removed by pulling with one finger on the outer or lateral canthus, then blinking to cause the lens to lose adhesion. The other hand is typically cupped underneath the eye to catch the lens. There also exist small tools specifically for removing lenses, which resemble small plungers made of flexible plastic; the concave end is raised to the eye and touched to the lens, forming a seal stronger than that of the lens with the cornea and allowing the lens to be removed from the eye.

Care


Lens cover to store contact lens

While daily disposable lenses require no cleaning, other types require regular cleaning and disinfecting in order to retain clear vision and prevent discomfort and infections by various microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, and Acanthamoeba, that form a biofilm on the lens surface. There are a number of products that can be used to perform these tasks:

• Multipurpose solution - The most popular cleaning solution for contact lenses. Used for rinsing, disinfecting, cleaning and storing the lenses. Using this product eliminates the need for protein removal enzyme tablets in most cases. Some multipurpose solutions are not effective at disinfecting Acanthamoeba from the lens. In May 2007, one brand of multipurpose solution was recalled due to a cluster of Acanthamoeba infections. Newer generations of multipurpose solutions are effective against bacteria, fungi, and acanthamoeba and are designed to condition the lenses while soaking.
• Saline solution - Used for rinsing the lens after cleaning and preparing it for insertion. Saline solutions do not disinfect the lenses.
• Daily cleaner - Used to clean lenses on a daily basis. A few drops of cleaner are applied to the lens while it rests in the palm of the hand, then the lens is rubbed for about 20 seconds with a fingertip (depending on the cleaner's directions) on each side. Long fingernails can damage the lens, so care should be taken.
• Hydrogen peroxide solution - Used for disinfecting the lenses, and available as 'two-step' or 'one-step' systems. If using a 'two-step' product, one must ensure that the lens taken out of the hydrogen peroxide is neutralized before it is worn, or else wear will be extremely painful. Saline must be used to rinse away the peroxide. If you get this solution in your eyes, it is highly recommended that you go to the Emergency Room and get your eye(s) irrigated.
• Enzymatic cleaner - Used for cleaning protein deposits off lenses, usually weekly, if the daily cleaner is not sufficient. Typically, this cleaner is in tablet form. Protein deposits make use of contact lenses uncomfortable, and may lead to various eye problems.

Some products must only be used with certain types of contact lenses: it is important to check the product label to make sure that it can be used for a given type of lens. Water alone should never be used to clean the contact lens itself as it will not adequately disinfect the lens. The use of water to clean contact lenses may lead to lens contamination and has been known in some cases to cause irreparable harm to the eye. It is also important to follow the product's directions carefully to reduce risk of eye infection or eye irritation. In addition, one should remember to wash the contact cases or lens covers thoroughly with water and multipurpose solution or hydrogen peroxide to avoid formation of biofilms on its surfaces.
It is important to ensure that the product does not become contaminated with microorganisms: the tips of the containers for these solutions should never touch any surface, and the container should be kept closed when not in use. To counteract minor contamination of the product and kill microorganisms on the contact lens, some products may contain preservatives such as thiomersal, benzalkonium chloride, benzyl alcohol, and other compounds. In 1989, thiomersal was responsible for about 10% of problems related to contact lenses: because of this, many products no longer contain thiomersal. Preservative-free products usually have shorter shelf life. For example, non-aerosol preservative-free saline solutions can typically be used for only two weeks once opened. The introduction of silicone-hydrogel soft contact lens materials in 1999 made selection of the proper disinfecting solution more important. One product that should not be used with PureVision silicone hydrogel lenses (Bausch & Lomb, Rochester, NY) is the Allergan Ultracare Disinfecting System (Allergan, Inc., Irvine, CA) or any of its components (Ultracare Disinfecting Solution, Ultracare Neutralizing Tablets, Lens Plus Daily Cleaner, and Ultrazyme Enzymatic Cleaner), as it is contraindicated for use with PureVision lenses.

EDITOR’S NOTE| LENSES WE STOCK ARE SOFT LENS MULTI - USE COLOURED COSMETIC CONTACTS. WHEN FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS PROVIDED THE LIFE IS UP TO 6 MONTHS AFTER OPENING, THIS VARIES PER PRODUCT. ENSURE YOU READ DETAILS ON EACH ITEM CAREFULLY BEFORE PURCHASE. SOLUTIONS HAVE ADVANCED GREATLY SINCE THIS WIKI ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED, THERE ARE NOW MANY RELIABLE SOLUTIONS EASILY OBTAINABLE FROM AN OPTOMETRIST NEAR YOU. SOME PEOPLE WILL NOTICE IRRITATION REGARDLESS OF THE SOLUTION OR ITEM QUALITY. SIMPLY PUT, SOME PEOPLE ARE JUST NOT SUITED TO WEARING CONTACTS.

WHILST WE HAVE TESTED EACH OF THESE PRODUCTS OURSELVES WITH NO NEGATIVE RESULTS, THIS DOES NOT CONSTITUE ANY FORM OF GUARANTEE AS EACH INDIVIDUAL WILL REACT DIFFERENTLY AS IS THE CASE FOR ANY COSMETIC PRODUCT.

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