Being without contact lens solution raises the immediate question of how to safely store or handle your lenses. Contact lens solution is a carefully formulated, sterile medical product designed to clean, disinfect, and hydrate the lens material, and is not simply water. Improper handling or storage introduces significant risks of infection and damage to the eyes. Understanding the proper immediate steps and the dangers of common substitutes is essential to protecting your vision.
Immediate Action: Prioritizing Eye Safety
When you realize you lack proper storage solution, remove your contact lenses immediately. Continued wear without the ability to clean and disinfect them increases the risk of debris and microbial buildup on the lens surface. Before touching your eyes or lenses, wash your hands meticulously with soap and water, rinsing thoroughly to remove all soap residue.
Wearing lenses that have not been correctly disinfected can introduce pathogens directly to the cornea, potentially leading to painful conditions like bacterial keratitis or corneal ulcers. By removing the lenses immediately, you eliminate the source of potential infection. The safest immediate course of action is always to switch to glasses until a proper, sterile solution can be acquired.
Critical Warnings: Dangerous Substitutes to Avoid
Household liquids pose severe risks to eye health and must be avoided entirely. Tap water is the most dangerous substitute because it is not sterile and often contains the microscopic organism Acanthamoeba. Exposing lenses to tap water is the primary risk factor for Acanthamoeba keratitis, a rare but sight-threatening infection that can result in permanent vision loss.
Furthermore, tap water contains minerals and has a different tonicity and pH level than tears, which can cause soft lenses to swell or change shape, leading to corneal damage. Saliva is another dangerous substitute, as it is teeming with bacteria, including common mouth organisms, and introducing this high bacterial load to the eye can cause aggressive infections.
Attempting to create a homemade saline solution by mixing table salt and water is also unsafe. It is practically impossible to achieve the required sterile environment and the correct physiological salt concentration (0.9% sodium chloride) necessary for safe eye use. Non-sterile or improperly balanced homemade solutions can introduce contaminants, irritate the eye, or cause the lens material to react negatively.
Safe Short-Term Storage Options
If discarding the lenses is not an option, the only relatively safe temporary measure is to use sterile, unpreserved saline solution. This solution, often sold for wound irrigation or nebulizers, is sterile and pH-balanced to keep the lens hydrated. However, sterile saline is only a rinsing and storage agent; it contains no disinfecting agents and will not kill bacteria or fungi present on the lens.
If used for temporary storage, the lenses must be disinfected with a proper multi-purpose or hydrogen peroxide solution for the full recommended duration before reinsertion. If no sterile liquid is available, the safest course is to let the lenses dry completely in a clean, empty case. Once dry, they must be soaked in a fresh, disinfecting solution for the manufacturer’s recommended time—typically six to eight hours—to rehydrate and sterilize them before attempting to wear them again.
How to Obtain Replacement Solution Quickly
The most practical step is to immediately obtain a proper, sterile contact lens solution. Many large grocery stores, big-box retailers, and 24-hour pharmacies stock a variety of contact lens care products, often including small, travel-sized kits. If a typical store is closed, check local gas stations or convenience stores, which sometimes carry small bottles of multipurpose solution. Contacting an eye care professional or hospital emergency room for guidance is also an option, as they may be able to provide a small emergency supply.