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GENERAL INFORMATION
ABOUT CONTACT LENSES

Wearing contact lenses? Considering wearing them? This page has information you can use to better understand your options for improved vision and comfort.

GP (Oxygen Permeable) Contact Lenses

GP (oxygen permeable) contact lenses are commonly known in the vision care field as rigid gas permeables, or RGPs.

GP contact lenses are made of a firm, durable plastic that transmits oxygen. They offer excellent eye health: because they don’t contain water, they resist deposits and are less likely than soft contacts to harbor bacteria. GP contact lenses clean and disinfect easily, don’t dehydrate, and last longer than soft lenses -- often many years longer.

The rigidity of GP contact lenses also means they are easier to handle than soft lenses. And since they retain their shape better, they provide crisper vision.

Don't confuse GP contact lenses with hard lenses. GP contact lenses may be firm, but they are not the uncomfortable hard lenses of the past, which didn't allow much oxygen to reach the eye. Hard lenses are almost obsolete nowadays.

GP contact lenses are custom made for each individual. Your eye care practitioner will measure the exact shape of your cornea and prescribe lenses with the curvature, size, and corrective power that suit your particular eyes.

Soft Lenses

Soft contact lenses are made from a gel-like plastic that contains anywhere from 38% to 79% water. They offer better initial comfort, and most will last for up to a year with proper care. Soft contacts range from disposable lenses, replaced every day, every few weeks or every few months, to daily wear lenses that are removed nightly. Most soft contact lenses are mass-produced in limited sizes and in a wide range of corrective powers. Other soft lenses are custom manufactured for individual prescriptions based on practitioner and patient needs.

To learn more about contact lenses, visit our web site designed just for contact lens wearers! Even if you already wear contacts, you will want to visit these pages. Contact lenses have changed dramatically over the past few years. You may not realize how many different kinds of contacts there are, or how new materials and designs can improve your vision and eye health.

For additional eye and vision topics, visit All About Vision.

For information on eye examinations, visit the site created by the Vision Council of America, Check Yearly. See Clearly.