As I perused my archives of old articles pertaining to eyecare,
I came upon one that might be of interest to contact lens wearers.
It was an article written by Susan Mathews in the March 8, 1989
issue of the Echo. Apparently, Susan was aggravated at the frequent
loss of her contact lenses. She was suggesting that maybe some
"beeper" device could be attached to a contact lens
that would activate when the lens was lost, leading the wearer
to the distress signal.
The idea of little "beepers" in your lost contact lenses
would certainly save a lot of stress and aggravation; especially
with nearly 25 million contact lens wearers in the USA. As a practicing
optometrist for 19 years, you would think that I have heard of
every conceivable way to lose a contact lens, but my patients
do their very best to expand the possibilities.
The one I hear most often is the "I put them in my case last night and this morning they were gone" episode.
Comment: That new vanishing plastic, silicon-acrylate,
is great for supplying oxygen to the eye, but its disappearing
act becomes quite an irritation.
"I always close the drain but I was so tired last night..."
Comment: We install very tiny drain-seeking devices in
every contact lens, so no matter how far you are from the sink,
they will find their way.
"My youngest got a hold of them and no telling where they are."
Comment: We hold special classes for toddlers whose mothers
are being fitted with contact lenses.
"My dog ate them."
Comment: We also install microscopic, high-frequency sound
devices, that for some reason dogs just love.
"I was just rubbing my eyes and they popped right out."
Comment: The rub-inducing agent found in most contact lenses
took years for optometrists to develop.
"I was just putting them on and they slipped up behind my eyes."
Comment: The brain-seeking nature of some contact lenses
is innate. We had nothing to do with it. However, nearly 98% of
optometrists still use these lenses.
I do sympathize with the many contact lens wearers that can relate
to some of the unfortunate events that I have mentioned. The research
and development in beepers for contact lenses has been exhaustive.
In 1983, Dr. FINDYOLENZ from Belgium invented just such a homing
device. He was able to incorporate a tiny radio transmitter in
a contact lens that, if lost, would send out kind of a distress
signal. His research budget at the University of Belgium was so
limited that he decided to try the new device on himself. Not
being adept at wearing contacts, it took him several hours just
to insert the lenses. Finally, after the tearing subsided, the
small electrical current created by the transmitter excited the
brain-seeking component of the plastic which in turn raised the
high-frequency pitch of the lens. He was found later that day
with a fried brain and surrounded by a pack of wild dogs.
Dr. Findyolenz's concept was never developed.
Dr. G's note: Jesting aside, the problem of contact lens loss
is becoming less of an issue. With the advent of disposable lenses,
it is no longer a financial crisis, and with the larger gas-permeable,
intrapalpebral (under the lid) fittings, loss is infrequent. Avoid
excess water in the eyes, and most importantly, shun the desire
to rub your eyes. Use a lens lubricant if you sense a dry lens;
an eye that lacks sufficient tears will be more apt to expel a
contact lens. If lens loss is frequent, despite good care, consult
your contact lens practitioner for a re-evaluation of the fit.