Contact lenses have at least two other purposes aside from correcting vision in the same manner as glasses. These are to change temporarily the curvature of the cornea and for decorative purposes. The procedure that seeks to change the eye curvature is called orthokeratology. They are commonly prescribed to be worn while sleeping and are removed upon awakening. Vision correction, however, may wear off during the day as the effect is only temporary.

Non-corrective lenses, also called plano are used for decorative purposes only such as changing the color of the eye or for some effects as in Halloween themes.

There are two (2) general categories of contact lenses which are soft and rigid gas permeable (RGP). Soft contact lenses, as its name aptly suggests are soft, flexible plastics that allow oxygen to pass through to the cornea. Newer versions include silicone-hydrogels to provide more oxygen for the eyes. RGP lenses are more durable and provide a clearer vision. Although not as initially comfortable as soft contacts, they are much easier to handle and less likely to tear.

Both types may be used for extended wear contact lenses or those used for overnight and continuous wear, but only a few RGP lenses are designed and approved for such purposes.

If you have been purchasing your contact lenses online for a while you know that prices change all the time and it is wise to compare prices every time you need to refill your supply. Most merchants will send you an email reminder just before your contact lens supply should be running out and may even offer a small discount on your next purchase. But just because you purchased from them last time doesn’t necessarily mean they are currently offering the best deal you could get. After all, that’s what shopping on the internet is all about – not being tied down to a specific merchant or optometrist. It is so easy to compare prices online and since you are getting sealed brand name contact lenses according to your prescription, you can shop worry free knowing you will be getting the exact same product no matter where you shop.

But while there are many shopping search engines available that can help you compare prices on your contact lenses, they don’t always offer the lowest price you can get. In fact, most websites actually keep their lowest prices a secret and don’t publish them online. They do this in order to maintain a higher level of profitability. If you want their true low prices you have to use one of their coupon codes. For instance, 1800Contacts may offer a higher price on your Focus Dailies than their competition but using one of 1800Contacts coupons you can actually get a much lower price.

If you follow our site frequently you are probably aware that most contact lens sites offer new coupons about once a month. But they are often hard to find and there hasn’t been a good place available that lists all coupons offered by the various merchants. That is – until now. A great service is available at deallocker.com. They list thousands of free online coupons and allow users to submit news ones they discover for everyone to enjoy. But the really cool thing about them is their toolbar addon which you can easily install in your browser. Using the toolbar you can find all the available coupon codes for any site you visit simply by clicking the link in the toolbar. This way you don’t have to go back and forth from the merchant’s site to deallocker.com simply browse around the web and all the coupon codes you need are always available to you.

It looks like some of Bausch and Lomb’s troubles are finally beginning to show resolution. The company has reported that their contact lens solution plant in Greenville has cleared inspection by federal regulators. This is one of the few positive steps the company has achieved over the past year and a half after they have suffered from two contact lens solution product recalls.

The first recall of their top line Renu with MoistureLoc was completely discontinued last year after the solution was connected to hundreds of cases of Fusarium keratitis, a dangerous eye infection which in extreme cases can lead to blindness. But this didn’t end the company’s troubles a few months later Bausch and Lomb had to recall millions of bottles of their Renu MultiPlus after trace amounts of iron were detected in the solution which could cause the cleaner to lose effectiveness earlier than it should. While this was a temporary recall and no actual cases of consumers hurt by the product, the recall of Renu MultiPlus was a big blow to the company’s reputation since this was considered a proven and tested solution for contact lenses.

With the two recalls coming one after the other and the second being announced while many lawsuits are still underway against the company, the future did not look good for B&L. But with Bausch and Lomb’s new ownership, many believe the company can turn itself around. The company is putting a lot of weight in marketing their new line of silicon hydrogel contact lenses sold under the Purevision brand and consider the Purevision line to be the catalyst for driving future growth.