Children do surprisingly well with contact lens wear.

We are talking about children aged 8-12 years of age, and studies show this group of youngsters do as well as their teenage peers in managing contact lenses. Studies found some positive outcomes. Children in one study reported improved self perception in terms of their physical appearance, their athletic competence, and their social acceptance.

What about safety and hygiene?

Here children also do well. It is widely understood they will take a little bit longer to master handling contact lenses, and we will review the handling and care instructions more often, and more carefully with children. But their problem rates are not higher than the teens.

Cost and commitment?

We will fine tune the pricing once we know the exact contact lens prescription, but re-usable soft disposable contact lenses start from $3 per day, and daily disposables from $2 per day. This includes appointment fee and contact lens solutions (where appropriate) and eye drops.

Cost per day goes down in the second year as fewer appointments are needed.

For new contact lens wearers there are usually several appointments needed. Firstly to fit and teach you how to insert and remove and care for contact lenses. Then follow up visits after one week and one month. For more information see our FAQ page.

Would you like to hear a second opinion? Dr Kate Gifford is an Australian Optometrist and Researcher with extensive experience fitting children with contact lenses. She is a gifted communicator too - in this video she talks about children and contact lenses.

A recent study is a reminder about avoiding water in contact lens care. The study, at the University of New South Wales School of Optometry and Vision Sciences, showed using a simply sticker “No Water” infographic on contact lens cases was a useful tool to remind people of the dangers of exposing contact lenses to water.

It is well known that water exposure is associated with contact lens eye disease (including microbial keratitis and sterile corneal infiltrates). Despite this, water contact is common! Wearers handle contact lenses with wet hands, shower and swim in contact lenses, or use water to rinse their lenses and/or storage cases.

The study, by Memoona Arshad, Dr Nicole Carnt, Dr Jacqueline Tan and Professor Fiona Stapleton, examined whether a visual reminder on storage cases as a prompt to avoid water could change behaviour.

Two hundred daily lens wearers were randomised to either receive a storage case with or without a ‘no-water’ sticker. Both groups also received written information on how to look after contact lenses. At the start and after six weeks, participants completed a self-administered lens hygiene questionnaire.

There was also microbial analysis of used storage cases, collected at both study visits. Analysis showed the change in water-contact behaviour resulted in less storage case contamination over time.

Of the 200 participants, the researchers found that after six weeks, endotoxin levels reduced significantly in the test group (compared with the control group). Additionally, they found that ‘nowater’ lens case stickers improved overall water contact behaviours.

So a simple reminder of what to do, or not do can bring results.

The study result has been picked up at the International Standards Organisation (ISO). They commented , “this is an exciting development, as this simple and cost effective intervention can improve behaviour and lower water bourne case contaminants.”

The concept was devised by a patient with a severe eye infection, and has potential to save vision through a safety message.

The hope is that it becomes a standard printed warning on contact lens paraphernalia.