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Contact Lenses for Computer Professionals?
LxDengar writes "For anyone who uses a computer around 10-plus hours a day, eye strain can become a serious issue. According to the American Optometric Association, 70-75% of computer workers experience eye and vision problems. Although I've tried contacts in the past, I found that my eyes dried out very quickly, and so switched back to glasses. Recently, my eye doctor mentioned a series of new contacts with better hydration for the eyes, and targeted to computer professionals (Acuvue, Ocular Sciences, etc). Do you wear contacts when staring at your screen for long periods? What contacts does community recommend for long periods at the computer?"
CRTs historically give you better color fidelity, but the brightness of LCDs means less eyestrain. Having worn RGPs for years, and switched between CRTs and LCDs, I can tell you that I can wear contacts with LCDs, but not CRTs.
and get some sleep already.
Probably see my response further below...but to respond to yours:
Since the inital recuperation from the surgery
I had my Lasik surgery done January 2005. My eyes are still going through the "initial recuperation". For the first 9 months or so my eye sight would fluctuate, one day my right eye would be clear, the next my left. Now it's fairly steady, but they dry out much more frequently than yours do. My night vision is absolutely terrible compared to what it was, though it's getting better. I also noticed significantly more headaches. I get tons of little "floaty" things which mess with vision. On subsequent visits, I was told everything looks normal. Yes, I knew this stuff could happen going in. However, the dreams of not needing glasses, and being able to read something further than 3 inches from my nose took hold.
Lasik is not the holy grail it seems to be. I would not recommend this surgery to anyone, ever. Unless having messed up vision (and possible blindness!) is worth the convenience of not having to slide a pair of glasses on every morning.
My wife is an ophthalmic technician, and has worked for ophthalmic surgeons for 20 years. I had been wearing contacts (softs) for a couple of years before we hooked up.
She has seen, and I have heard the war stories, of all the myriad ways that soft lenses can go wrong. Based on that, and the rather strongly worded advice of one of her bosses in 1989, I switched to rigid gas permeable hard lenses, and have since upgraded to extended wear versions.
This is the best thing I have ever done with respect to my eyes. Since there is no fluid component to the lens, changes in humidity, gusts of air, dry eyes, etc., are no where near as big a deal.
They pass more Oxygen than ANY soft lens, and for this and many other reasons, are more healthy.
Unlike softlenses, if some "bug", fungal, bacterial, or whatever, gets into my eyes, the gas perms are not a medium for growth. The crap in the news about fungal growths associated with a particular B&L solution for softs are simply not an issue.
I wear my lenses 7x24. They are approved for 2 weeks of continuous wear. I have gone much longer with no issues.
They DO take a lot longer to get used to (weeks). Typically, they are harder for the practitioner to fit, more expensive, more uncomfortable until you are used to them, cost more per lens and per fitting session. An often overlooked benefit is that if (when) you get something foreign like dust, dirt or an eyelash in your eye, it is extraordinarily uncomfortable.... this typically causes the wearer to get lens out RIGHT NOW, and to deal with the comtamination. This is a good thing. As opposed to just tolerating it as a little uncomfortable, which is the norm for softs.
As far as Lasik goes.... well, what they don't tell you is a couple of things:
When it goes bad, it goes VERY bad. The options at that point are grim. it can get as bad as being legally blind.
Second, no one knows what the long term effects of lasic are. I plan to be alive for at least 50 more years, and there is no track record for this procedure anywhere near that long ago. Further, as we age, we ALL need cheaters or bifocals to deal with the fact that our eyes loose flexibility as we age. Lack of flexability translates into limited ability to change focus from close up to infinity. Lasic may set you free from your specs now, but you are still going to need cheaters or bifocals starting at around 40-45. FWIW, I keep several sets around... so you can guess my age....
Remember, these are your EYES. You only have two, and unless something changes radically, you can never get more. They can transplant hearts, kidneys, and lots of other things. Not eyes. Be conservative. Talk to a Doctor (not an optometrist) about hards. Find someone who specializes, not a refractive surgeon running a lasik mill. And finally, remember, we all are going to need cheaters when we get older.
Red