Contact Lenses

Contact lenses are a comfortable option for many people requiring vision correction. Our goal is to provide all of our patients with the most advanced options in the field of contact lenses. We pride ourselves on our ability to find innovative solutions for even our hardest-to-fit patients. We offer a wide range of contact lenses, including disposable, colored, toric lenses for astigmatism, rigid gas permeable (or "hard" lenses), bifocals, and monovision.

** PLEASE NOTE: CONTACT LENS PRESCRIPTIONS ARE VALID FOR ONE YEAR **

Seeing 20/20 isn’t the only reason for an annual contact lens exam. Your eyes are susceptible to irritations that may be caused by contact lens wear and many problems that are undetectable to you can develop into more serious conditions. Therefore, it is important that you schedule a yearly exam and maintain healthy contact lens care and compliance. If you are experiencing discomfort or dryness in your eyes you should visit us as soon as possible. The Optometrist may decide to try a different lens, a different contact lens disinfecting solution or to try an adjustment in your wearing schedule.

Contact Lens Evaluation

Contact lenses are a great alternative to wearing eyeglasses. An often unknown fact is that not all patients wear contact lenses as their primary source of vision correction. Each patient is different, with some patients wearing contact lenses only on weekends, special occasions or just for sports. That is the beauty of contact lens wear, the flexibility it gives each individual patient and their lifestyles.

Since contact lenses are not “one-size fits all”, a contact lens evaluation is required to ensure a great fit and prescription. At your initial evaluation, we will examine your eyes to determine if you are a good candidate to wear contact lenses. Your prescription and the curvature of your eye will be measured, and we will discuss lifestyle and any special needs you may have. We will then determine the type of contact lenses that best fit your eyes and provide you with the most accurate vision while ensuring that your eyes remain healthy with the lenses. Since contact scripts are only valid for 1 year, a yearly contact evaluation must be completed for the script to be renewed.

For ALL First Time Wearers

You will be scheduled for an "Insertion & Removal Training Session" with the Optical Department. You will learn how to properly care for & handle new lenses, become proficient at lens insertion and removal and discuss a wearing time schedule. We will then schedule you to come back in for a "Contact Lenses Check" to check that your contact lenses are fitting properly and that your eyes are adjusting properly, please make sure to wear the contacts in for this appointment. The Optometrist will look at the lenses on your eyes and determine if any changes need to be made. If everything is fine, then a final prescription can be written for contacts.

Types of Contact Lenses

Soft Lenses are comprised of a soft plastic material that allows oxygen to flow to the cornea. This type of contact is comfortable and popular among contact lens wearers. These lenses are disposable at the end of each wear cycle. They are a great choice for people who are active. They are available for daily, bi-monthly, and monthly wear.

Daily Disposable lenses are discarded every day making them convenient and easy to care for.
Soft Multifocal contacts can work like bifocal eyeglasses for both distance and near vision.
Silicone Hydrogels and like materials will allow more oxygen to the eye, making the lenses more comfortable to wear.

Gas-Permeable (GP) Lenses are also known as hard contacts. They are made of a lightly flexible plastic and are more durable than soft lenses. Multifocal GP lenses are also available for most prescriptions, including astigmatism correction. Although they are more durable and less expensive over the life of the lens, this type of contact is oftentimes less comfortable than soft lenses and more difficult to get used to.

Specialty Lenses are used to correct vision in certain medical conditions and prescriptions.

How to order Contact Lenses

To place an order for contacts, you can call our office at 724-863-3116 or stop in during office hours.
To order Contacts through our office you must have a current valid prescription.
If you are a current patient with Irwin Eye Care, we will have your most current prescription on hand.
If you are a placing an order with an outside prescription, we would need a copy of it when the order is placed.
Contact orders come in between 7-10 business days, as long as there are not any vendor backorders.

** PLEASE NOTE: CONTACT LENS PRESCRIPTIONS ARE VALID FOR ONE YEAR **

Brands of Contact Lenses

Here are the brands of Contact Lenses that we can order.

Alcon

Air Optix
- for Astigmatism with Hydraglyde
- Aqua Colors
- Multifocal with Hydraglyde
- Night & Day
- Plus Hydraglyde
Dailies
- Aqua Comfort Plus
- Aqua Comfort Plus Multifocal
- Aqua Comfort Plus Toric
- Total One
- Total One Astigmatism
- Total One Multifocal
Precision 1
- Dailies
- Dailies Astigmatism
Total 30

Bausch & Lomb

Ultra
- Astigmatism
- Multifocal
- Multifocal Toric
BioTrue
- 1 Day
- 1 Day Multifocal
- 1 Day Toric
Infuse
Purevision/Purevision 2

Coopervision

Avaira Vitality
Biofinity
- Energy
- Multifocal
- Multifocal Toric
- Toric
- Torix XR
- XR
Biomedics
Clarity
- Multifocal
- Toric
Clearsight
MyDay
- Multifocal
- Toric
Proclear
- Multifocal
- Multifocal XR
- Multifocal Toric
- Toric
- Toric XR

Vistacon

Acuvue
- 1 Day Max
  - Multi
- 1 Day Moist
  - 1 Day Moist for Astigmatism
  - 1 Day Moist Multifocal
- Acuvue 2
- Vita
- Vita for Astigmatism
Oasys
- for Astigmatism
- Multifocal
- with Transition
Oasys 1 Day
- for Astigmatism

Contact Lens Care

The following guidelines for contact lens care have been developed in partnership with the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Contact Lens Association for Ophthalmologists, Cornea Society,

and American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery:

Before handling contact lenses, wash your hands with soap and water. Then, rinse and dry them with a lint-free towel.
Minimize contact with water, including removing lenses before going swimming or into a hot tub.
Contacts should not be rinsed with or stored in water (tap or sterile).
Do not put your lenses in your mouth to wet them. Saliva is not a sterile solution.
Do not use saline solution and rewetting drops to disinfect lenses. Neither is an effective or approved disinfectant.
Wear and replace contact lenses according to the schedule prescribed by your eye care professional.
Follow the specific contact lens cleaning and storage guidelines from your eye care professional and the solution manufacturer.
Put lens in the palm of your hand and apply solution. Gently rub the lens in a circular motion for about 20 seconds.
Rinse the contact lens case with fresh solution, not water, and leave the empty case open to air dry.
Keep the contact lens case clean and replace it regularly, at least every three months. Lens cases can be a source of contamination and infection. Do not use cracked or damaged lens cases.

Handle Your Contact Lens Solution with Care too:

Do not reuse old solution or top off the solution in your lens case.
Do not transfer contact lens solution into smaller travel-size containers. This can affect the sterility of the solution, which can lead to an eye infection.
Do not allow the tip of the solution bottle to come in contact with any surface, and keep the bottle tightly closed when not in use.
If you store your lenses in the case for an extended period, consult the instructions for the lenses or the contact lens solution to determine if re-disinfecting the lenses is appropriate before you wear them. If it has been more than 30 days since the last time you wore your lenses it is essential to re-disinfect them.

Emergency Eye Care

In the event that you have an eye-related emergency that you feel is in need of immediate attention,

please call our office at 724-863-3116 to schedule a medical appointment. We are able to provide care for most eye problems.

If there is a medical emergency when we are not in the office, please call Eye & Ear Hospital 412-647-2200.

They can provide a variety of triage of vision-related issues.

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