[Contact lens care and maintenance]

All contact lenses with replacement schedules longer than daily must be maintained. At each step of their use, the lenses may be contaminated. Contact lens solutions perform the essential functions of cleaning, decontaminating and preserving the lenses to prevent infectious problems and improve wearing comfort. Contact lens contamination essentially comes from hands, cleaning solutions, cases, water and the environment. The pathogenic microorganisms are mainly Gram-negative bacteria, fungi and amoebae. Contact lens deposits may or may not have an organic origin. Their presence increases the risk of infection because they serve as a nutrient matrix for microbes, and they are responsible for wearing discomfort. Contact lens solutions differ in their composition, their mechanism of action and the concentration of the various agents. To prescribe the best lens care system to each wearer and for each material, it is necessary to be very familiar with them. Maintenance is the main cause of discomfort with contact lenses, either through improper use, solution-material incompatibility, or a reaction of the wearer to the components.