The design of bifocal contact lenses is to improve the vision of those people who suffer from a condition known as presbyopia. One of the key signs to know whether you are developing presbyopia is if you have to hold what you are reading farther away from your eyes in order to be able to focus on the words.
People today are very youth conscious. Many people want to appear younger than they really are. This is the way of our society. Wearing contact lenses as opposed to regular glasses can not only improve your vision but it will help you to appear younger than you really are.
You can obtain bifocal contacts in both soft and rigid gas permeable (GP) materials. Some of them can even be worn on a disposable basis. One brand is even available in silicone hydrogel material.
When you get a bifocal contact lens you are actually getting two prescriptions in the same lens. Multi focal contact lenses are lenses that have more than one power, and this includes the bifocals.
Bifocal and multi focal contact lenses work in a few different ways, depending upon the lens’s design. The designs are broken down into two main groups:
1. Translating lenses allow your pupil to alternate between the two powers as your gaze shifts upward and then downward.
2. Simultaneous vision lenses mean that your eye must look through both the near and distance powers at the same time. They are available in two main kinds: concentric ring and aspheric designs.
Bifocal eyeglasses and bifocal contact lenses work in much the same way. Each has two power sections that are separated by a line. Your pupil looks through either the top part or the lower part depending upon whether you have to see an object far away or close up.
With bifocal eyeglasses, this concept works because the lenses remain in place as you eyes move. This can also occur with contact lenses. Since most multi focal contact lenses are gas permeable, they are smaller than soft lenses. They also ride on your eye just above your lower eyelid. So, when you shift your gaze down, the lens is able to stay in place and allows you to see through the lower or the near-correction part of the lens.
How do you know which bifocal contact lens is the right one for you?
There are two main factors that come into play when your eye care professional considers choosing the right lens for you: pupil size and your near prescription. There are no set rules here. Generally, low “adds” are much better suited to an aspheric multi focal lens. If you have a high add, you usually have alternating vision that is achieved with a translating bifocal. If you have a pupil that is too large, this can be a problem for an aspheric contact lens.
Before finding the one that is right for you, you may have to try several different kinds of bifocal contact lenses. Most eye practitioners have free samples on hand to help you make the right decision before you actually get your contact lens prescription. Remember that you will still have to pay for the fitting process which can take a lot more time than if you were to just buy a pair of regular glasses. Always check with your eye doctor to see if bifocal contact lenses are in your best interest.