Running out of contact lens solution late at night prompts many people to consider using household alternatives. The definitive answer to whether you can use eye drops or artificial tears to store your contact lenses overnight is no. Substituting proper solution with eye drops significantly increases the risk of serious eye complications. This practice bypasses the critical process of lens disinfection, which is necessary every time lenses are removed.
The Direct Answer: Eye Drops Versus Contact Solution
The fundamental difference between eye drops and contact lens solutions lies in their intended purpose and chemical composition. Eye drops, including lubricating drops and artificial tears, are designed for temporary comfort and hydration of the eye’s surface. They are essentially sterile saline, water, and viscosity agents that mimic the eye’s natural tears.
Eye drops lack the sophisticated cleaning and disinfecting agents required for contact lens storage. A multi-purpose contact lens solution is a complex, multi-functional product. It contains chemical disinfectants, such as Polyquad or PHMB, formulated to kill a broad spectrum of microorganisms.
Contact solutions also include surfactants, which are detergents that actively lift protein deposits, lipids, and debris from the lens surface during an overnight soak. The solution is buffered to maintain a specific pH balance, ensuring the lens material remains properly hydrated and retains its shape. Eye drops cannot remove these deposits and do not contain the necessary concentration of biocides to disinfect the lens surface.
Understanding the Risk of Improper Storage
Storing lenses in a non-disinfecting liquid, like eye drops, creates an ideal environment for microbial growth overnight. After a day of wear, the lens surface is coated with bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms naturally present in the eye. Without potent disinfecting agents, these microbes multiply rapidly.
This microbial buildup significantly increases the risk of developing severe eye infections, primarily microbial keratitis. Keratitis is an inflammation of the cornea that can lead to painful corneal ulcers and, in serious cases, permanent vision impairment. A particularly dangerous organism, Acanthamoeba, often found in water sources, can adhere to improperly stored lenses and cause a devastating infection.
Some eye drops contain ingredients that can bind to the lens material, causing the lens to cloud or change shape. Using a non-buffered solution can affect the lens’s water content and oxygen permeability, potentially leading to corneal hypoxia, or oxygen deprivation, when the lens is reinserted. This lack of oxygen can cause corneal swelling and compromise the eye’s natural defenses.
Immediate Emergency Action Steps
If you run out of contact lens solution, the safest action is to remove your lenses immediately and wear glasses. If your lenses are daily disposables, simply discard them. Protecting your vision takes priority over saving a single pair of lenses.
If you must store your contact lenses temporarily, focus on locating a 24-hour pharmacy or store that sells travel-sized contact lens solution. For very short-term hydration, sterile saline solution may be used as an absolute last resort. Saline only rinses and hydrates; it does not disinfect. Any lenses stored in saline must be thoroughly cleaned and soaked in a proper disinfecting solution for the full recommended time before being worn again.
Never use tap water, distilled water, saliva, or any form of homemade saline solution to store or rinse your lenses. These liquids are not sterile and contain microorganisms that pose a severe threat to eye health, including Acanthamoeba. If you cannot obtain proper disinfecting solution, it is safer to store the lenses dry in a clean case and purchase solution the next day. Soak them for the minimum disinfection period before use.