Contact lenses during pregnancy. Can pregnant women wear contact lenses? Wearing contact lenses during pregnancy

Many pregnant women, especially those who cannot imagine themselves without contact lenses, are interested in whether it is possible to continue wearing lenses during the period of bearing a child. We have tried to answer this question.

The effect of pregnancy on the eyes and vision

To understand whether pregnant women can use contact lenses, you first need to understand how pregnancy affects vision. In connection with the development of the fetus in the body of a woman, significant changes occur that do not bypass the eyes. So, due to the increased load on cardiovascular system the blood supply to the eyes may deteriorate, as a result of which the vessels of the retina narrow. In addition, it may increase arterial pressure, which sometimes entails the danger of hemorrhage in the retinal region and its detachment.
We must not forget about hormonal changes in a woman's body. In particular, it increases the level of progesterone, which leads to fluid retention in the tissues of the body. Such changes affect the sclera of the eye, which worsens accommodation, that is, the ability of the optical system of the eye to focus on objects. There may also be a slight deterioration in vision. However, you should not worry too much about this, since after childbirth the process of accommodation and visual acuity, as a rule, are restored.

During pregnancy, the expectant mother may also experience discomfort associated with dry and irritated eyes. Hormones are again “to blame” for this, with an increase in the level of which, the release of tear fluid, which moisturizes the front surface of the eye, decreases.
In view of the foregoing, a pregnant woman should be regularly examined by an ophthalmologist, and not only for the condition of the retina, but also for changes in visual acuity and the condition of the anterior surface of the eyes ( see table).

Vision problems that occur in a woman due to pregnancy,
and ways to solve them

Wearing contact lenses during pregnancy

Compliance should also be taken with all responsibility in order to avoid any risk of complications in this already difficult immune system women period. In case of danger of non-compliance with the rules for care the best option for a pregnant woman, they can become who, unlike, do not need care.

So, wearing contact lenses during pregnancy in most cases is acceptable, but the final decision should be made by an ophthalmologist after examining the condition of the eyes and diagnosing the patient's vision.

Contact correction of myopia has firmly entered our lives. And the appearance of a baby is not a reason to refuse it. In the article, we will analyze whether it is possible for a pregnant woman to wear lenses before and during childbirth.

Pregnancy, especially if it proceeds without pathology, is a physiological process. There is nothing wrong with using contact vision correction while expecting a baby.. An ophthalmologist examines a woman twice during pregnancy in order to make sure that there are no contraindications to childbirth. Your doctor will tell you if you should be concerned about wearing contact lenses. Usually, doctors do not recommend discarding lenses if the eyes do not suffer.

REFERENCE: During the visit to the ophthalmologist, it is better to have a container with you and remove contact lenses for precise check vision.

But during pregnancy, a woman's cellular and humoral immunity always decreases, and the entire body's defense against infections suffers. Nature in this way allows you to normally endure and give birth to a child who is half - alien female body and immunity. Therefore, any, even the weakest infections, can quickly damage a pregnant woman. They easily become ill with viral and bacterial infections, with frequent development of complications.

This also applies to eye infections. Conjunctivitis is not as dangerous as keratitis, an inflammation of the cornea. The smallest wounds may not immediately make themselves felt due to the presence of a contact lens. The cornea becomes inflamed, there is a strong pain in the eyes and lacrimation.

Keratitis develops very rapidly, in a few hours. That's why the appearance of any discomfort in the eyes during pregnancy is a reason to urgently visit a doctor. With keratitis, local antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, healing drops and gels are prescribed.

IMPORTANT: If keratitis is not treated or rendered medical care late, the area of ​​the cornea dies, leading to blindness.

Another thing to keep in mind when pregnant is hormonal changes. They can lead to a decrease in the amount of tears and dryness of the eye, conjunctiva. This condition is called xerophthalmia.

Soft contact ordinary or colored lenses in such conditions are uncomfortable to wear, there is a constant feeling foreign body in the eyes, dryness. With a slight decrease in the amount of tears, moisturizing drops are recommended. If the dryness is pronounced, then it is better to switch to wearing glasses for the entire period of pregnancy.

Is it possible to give birth in contact lenses?

The period of childbirth is the most exciting in a woman's life. If her vision leaves much to be desired, then without contact lenses she will be disoriented in an unfamiliar delivery room. Therefore, it is better to have some kind of vision correction tool with you. But Which is better, glasses or contact lenses?

pros

Every woman wants to see her baby clearly after giving birth. The clear vision of the woman in labor will help her feel more comfortable in an unfamiliar room, see the doctors and the environment well, and fully control the situation.

Some women who have gone through childbirth without lenses report discomfort associated with poor eyesight. Glasses are also not very comfortable directly in the process of attempts, they fog up, fly off, can break and damage the eyes.

Minuses

Not many people know that the first birth can last more than a day. If they exhaust the woman in labor, then doctors give drugs to help her fall asleep with medication. A short rest period will allow a woman to regain strength and give birth on her own.

The goggles can be easily removed during sleep. You can't do that with lenses. Even if you take a container with a solution into the generic unit, you can simply forget to remove them. Childbirth is not the easiest process, a woman in labor is very exhausted and tired, so she can easily forget about contact correction means.

Childbirth often occurs spontaneously, without surgery. But no one is protected from the development of complications that will require surgery or a ward. intensive care. If in the process of childbirth you have to proceed with an emergency caesarean section, then no one will remember about the lenses in the confusion. After a cesarean, a woman does not immediately come to her senses and contact lenses will remain on the cornea for more than a day.

This is very dangerous for the cornea. She is sensitive to oxygen starvation and suffer greatly from it. The cornea swells, infectious keratitis, dangerous blindness, will quickly develop. About contact lenses, if you have taken the risk of giving birth in them, you should repeatedly warn all medical personnel.

IMPORTANT: Be sure to tell several obstetricians about the lenses, as doctors are on duty in shifts. Childbirth can begin with one brigade, and end with another.

If there is a fear that without lenses you will not see your baby, then it is not justified. With myopia, only distance vision suffers. Up close, a woman sees well, and after giving birth, the baby will definitely be placed on the mother’s chest. It will be a couple of centimeters from the mother's face, so the woman can easily see the small nose and eyes.

You can take glasses into the birth unit and take them off when they get in the way. This will be the safer option. After all, the main thing is to preserve the health of the mother and the newborn, so that the mother can admire the baby for all subsequent years.

Wearing lenses even the most latest generation always has some limitations and nuances, especially when it comes to expectant mothers. Let's see if it is possible to wear lenses during pregnancy and how safe it is.

• If you did not experience any problems with your vision before pregnancy, but it has deteriorated slightly or significantly from the first weeks, it is easiest to turn to regular glasses, since removing and putting on lenses requires certain skills that you will not be able to get right away.
• If you are sure that everything will work out for you, or your vision required correction even before pregnancy, there is no reason to refuse to wear lenses. Some women do not take them off even during childbirth (the restriction can only be C-section).

Doctors do not impose a ban on wearing lenses for pregnant women!

However!

You should not continue or start using lenses during pregnancy unless you are sure that you will strictly comply with all hygiene requirements.

The immunity of the expectant mother is weakened. A pregnant woman should regularly wash the lenses and in no case forget to change the solution. After all, reduced immunity becomes an ideal atmosphere for the appearance of infectious processes that can affect not only the mother, but also the baby.

It is also important for pregnant women to listen to their feelings. If, for any reason, you find redness and pain in your eyes, you should immediately inform your ophthalmologist and, possibly, temporarily replace contact lenses with glasses, or even abandon vision correction altogether.

Choice of lenses during pregnancy

When choosing lenses during pregnancy, consult your doctor or trust those manufacturers and models that you have dealt with before. We recommend to pay attention to one-day from the company Johnson&Johnson.

Increased eye sensitivity during pregnancy requires wearing lenses with high oxygen permeability, at least 100 units. An excellent option would be one-day models, which, compared to multi-day ones, put much less pressure on eyeball and more comfortable to wear.

Everyone knows that during the period of gestation, the level of progesterone in the blood rises - a hormone that is responsible for the preservation and maturation of the fetal egg. In addition, progesterone can retain moisture in the body, which is why many expectant mothers often complain of swelling throughout the body. Ophthalmologists recommend limiting the wearing of contact lenses during pregnancy due to the fact that during this period against the background hormonal changes arises slight swelling the membranes of the eye and vision falls, and additional compression by the lenses can aggravate the condition.

IMPORTANT! When discomfort when using lenses during pregnancy, be sure to visit an ophthalmologist.

Can lenses be worn during pregnancy? infections and sterility.

There is an opinion that women with frequent relapses herpesvirus infection, the risk of infectious complications of the eyes when wearing lenses during pregnancy is increased. The fact is that during the period of gestation, the immunity of a woman is somewhat reduced, and any, even the most insignificant errors in personal hygiene can provoke inflammatory process. That is why it is worth following all the rules for wearing, storing and processing contact lenses.

Can lenses be worn during childbirth?

Many mothers with poor eyesight are concerned about the ban on wearing contact lenses during childbirth itself. It should be noted that this “veto” is partly justified, but this only applies to operative delivery. During a caesarean section, a woman is often under general anesthesia, therefore, the process of washing the eye with tear fluid in the absence of blinking is disturbed. The presence of contact lenses impairs the flow of oxygen and exacerbates the dryness of the mucous membrane, which can subsequently cause irritation and redness of the eyes. All other mothers who are preparing for natural childbirth can be assured that there are no contraindications to wearing lenses this important point no.

Reasons why you can wear lenses during pregnancy instead of glasses:

• Excellent vision
• good review
• Reduces eye fatigue throughout the day
• Objects are not distorted and do not change their size
• Convenience - the lenses are invisible to others, do not press or rub
• Opportunity to correct the vision of the right and left eyes separately

Can lenses be worn during pregnancy? General recommendations and rules of use.

Before putting on contact lenses, they must be cleaned with a special solution.

Multi-day lenses should not be worn for more than six nights in a row, and when changing them to a new pair, be sure to take a break for one or two nights. Such lenses should have an oxygen permeability of more than one hundred units, which reduces the risk of blindness and damage to the retina.

It is better to buy lenses by prescription, in specialized stores, preferring oxygen-permeable models.

If your eyes have become very tired recently, you can change the model of lenses, for example, multi-day lenses for one-day ones.

It is better to swim in the pool without contact lenses, as the substances contained in the water can damage their structure.

In no case is it allowed to wear other people's contact lenses, as this can lead to infection of the eyes and the development of an inflammatory process.

Interested in whether it is possible to wear lenses during pregnancy, each woman should track her own feelings, because if there is even slight discomfort when wearing them, it is better to give preference to glasses. As a rule, within a few months after childbirth, vision is restored to its original level and everything falls into place. Of course, you can always wear lenses to improve visual acuity, or once laser correction view, forever forgetting this problem - the choice is yours.

Pregnancy is not a contraindication to the use of contact lenses. However, during pregnancy, hormonal changes occur, which can cause dry eyes, or changes in vision. Therefore, if a woman begins to feel discomfort in the eyes, redness or swelling of the eyes, decreased vision, then it is advisable to temporarily stop using lenses and switch to glasses.

Colored lenses in pregnant women can be used without fear of harming the baby. The presence of a tint in contact lenses does not change its properties.

Choosing contact lenses for pregnant women: what to look for?

Contact lenses are selected by an ophthalmologist on an individual basis after an ophthalmological examination.

To select a contact correction, the following is determined:

• visual acuity;
• refraction value;
• radius of curvature of the cornea.

Based on these data, the doctor prescribes a certain type of contact lenses. If during pregnancy there is a change in vision, then you need to contact an ophthalmologist for a new prescription.

During pregnancy, it is desirable to use lenses with a high hydrophilicity or with the presence of a moisturizing component. If the patient can tolerate only a particular type of lens, then it is possible to use a pregnant lens drops with a moisturizing component and without preservatives. The need for hydration during pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of dry eye.

To avoid hypoxic complications from prolonged wear, lenses with a high gas permeability coefficient, mainly for oxygen, are used. For example, silicone hydrogel.

Can you give birth with contact lenses?

The need to remove lenses during natural childbirth is due to the fact that during childbirth, in some cases, it is required to carry out. During the operation, the patient should not have foreign objects; during anesthesia, the woman does not blink and, accordingly, the exchange of tear fluid under the lens is disturbed, which can lead to eye irritation.

General rules for the use and storage of contact lenses

To avoid the development of complications when using contact lenses, you need to observe the wearing mode and store them correctly.

Wearing mode can be as follows:

• day;
• flexible wearing (can be left on for up to 2 days);
• prolonged wearing (worn up to 7 days);
• long-term wear (up to 30 days).

It is better for pregnant women to use only daily lenses. If you use CL at night, then hypoxic changes may occur - corneal edema appears, leading to blurred vision.

According to the mode of replacement lenses are divided into:

• daily;
• frequent scheduled replacement (wear up to 2 weeks);
• planned replacement (used 1-3 months);
• traditional (up to 6 months).

It is important to strictly observe the terms of use. If the lens is worn longer than the period indicated on the package, then inflammatory and infectious complications may occur, allergic reactions. During pregnancy, it is better to use daily lenses or with frequent scheduled replacement.

Store lenses in a special container. Each lens is located in a separate cell, if the refraction value differs in the right and left eye, then it is desirable that the container cells be marked. The container is washed under running water every day.

The lenses in the container must be completely immersed in a special solution that helps to moisturize and cleanse them of plaque. Any solution for lenses during pregnancy can be used - the one that is more familiar to you and which was recommended by an ophthalmologist when choosing lenses. The solution must be changed daily.

Yulia Chernova, ophthalmologist, specially for the site

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