By Dr. Giovanna Olivares, OD, FAAO; Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Director & Staff Writer
Even though contact lenses are sealed up and sterile when originally packaged, you should NOT wear contact lenses past their expiration date. We’ll cover why in the rest of this blog.
The problem isn’t so much the contact lenses—which are typically made from a hydrogel polymer or a silicone hydrogel—but instead the saline solution they’re packaged in, as well as the seal of the package. You can find the manufacturer’s expiration date for the contact lenses on the original packaging (usually a box) as well the individual contact lens packaging. It’s usually one to four years from the day they’re made. Beyond that date, the quality of the saline can degrade over time, and/or become contaminated if the seal of the package is compromised, allowing bacteria and other organisms inside.
There’s only one thing to do with expired lenses: Recycle them. It’s never fun when things go to waste, but it’s for your own safety. To avoid running into this issue, be sure to wear your contact lenses from oldest to newest.
About 26 million1 people in EMEA wear contact lenses, and they’re safe—when cared for properly. It’s often when people don’t follow the care instructions their Optician provides that the risk of serious eye infections rises. People who choose to wear expired contact lenses run the risk of experiencing a variety of issues, including:
When you hear the words “medical device” you might imagine a pacemaker or hip implant. But contact lenses are considered medical devices too, and because of that, a prescription is required to wear them (even costume or coloured contact lenses). Thing is, a contact lens prescription generally expires on a yearly basis, so even if your contact lenses haven’t expired yet, your prescription may have. Your eye health can change over the course of the year, and so can your prescription, so it’s recommended that you visit your Optician every year.
It may be tempting to take the risk and wear expired lenses, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. Depending on its severity, an eye infection can become a serious matter, leading to corneal scarring and even sight loss. Do your due diligence and re-order your lenses before their expiration. Just remember—you may need to renew your contact lens prescription to do so.
