A survey of contact lens wearers. Part I: Design and demographics

A mail survey of several hundred hard and soft contact lens wearers was conducted, focusing upon demographic characteristics of wearers, factors involved with purchasing, wearing and caring for lenses, and the attitudes, perceptions, and anxieties which wearers have about lenses. The results are presented in two papers. This paper focuses upon survey design and the demographics of the respondents. A number of differences were found between hard and soft lens wearers and between the regular and the occasional and former wearers. For example, occasional and former wearers in general were less likely to have other lens wearers in their family and were more likely than regular wearers to report purchase of lenses to improve their appearance or their vision. Some implications are discussed.