GLASSES AND CONTACT LENSES

Optical Department

In addition to the comprehensive eye care services provided at Coastal Eye Specialists, our practice also features an optical shop with a wide array of eyeglass frames and lenses to suit every taste and budget. We offer frames from many top designers, as well as many stylish and affordable choices. We also carry frames for children and teens.

Our convenient on-site location eliminates the hassle of having to your glasses made by someone who is unfamiliar with your eyes, and helps our doctors ensure that your eyewear is made to their specifications and with your specific needs in mind. In addition to glasses and contact lenses, we also offer sunglasses, sports glasses, goggles and safety and athletic eyewear.

When visiting our optical shop, you will be assisted by our experienced professional opticians, who can help you decide which type of glasses are best for you. Our opticians can also help determine what type of lens, coating, tint, and other options are best for you, take a variety of measurements to ensure proper fit of your eyewear, and custom-order your lenses. Once ready, the opticians will verify the proper prescription and fit, and remain available to help service and maintain your glasses as needed. We strongly recommend that your glasses be selected and fitted by professional opticians who meet the high standards of Coastal Eye, to ensure you get the best performance and value from your eyewear.

The Optical Shop is open Monday through Friday, 8:30AM to 5PM; no appointment is necessary to see our professional opticians. Extended optical hours may be available by appointment. Hours are subject to change; please call for updates. To learn more about our optical shop, call us today at (805) 983-0700, or stop in to see the wide array of products we offer.

Coastal Eye Specialists donates used and recycled glasses to the local Lions Club. If you would like to donate your older glasses, please speak to one of our opticians. Depending on their condition, they may be able to extend a credit towards your next pair of glasses.

Contact lenses

Thanks to advances in optical technology, almost everyone can now wear contact lenses, regardless of the type or extent of their vision problems. That includes patients with astigmatism and those who need bifocal or multifocal lenses. At Coastal Eye, we offer a comprehensive array of contact lenses to suit our patients’ individual needs—from daily disposables to extended-wear soft contacts to rigid gas-permeable lenses. Talk with us to find out which contact lenses are best for you.

Note: Contact lenses are medical devices that must be professionally fit, and require regular care and attention for safe wear. Proper contact lens fitting requires additional testing and examination, and may require an additional special visit to complete.

Daily wear lenses

Daily-wear soft contact lenses are by far the most popular type of contacts worn. Made of a flexible plastic polymer, daily-wear lenses are put in each morning and taken out each night. They must be cleaned and disinfected in an appropriate cleaning solution while you sleep. Daily-wear contacts come in many colors, and require periodic replacement at intervals determined by your eyes and the type of lens.

Extended Wear lenses

Extended-wear soft contact lenses can be worn all the time, including while you sleep. Depending on whether you have 7-day (standard) or 30-day lenses, you may need to take out and clean your contacts only once a week or once a month. Extended-wear lenses are made of soft silicone that retains moisture longer than daily-wear contacts, allows more oxygen to reach the eye, and reduces bacteria and protein buildup.

Although many patients prefer the convenience of 30-day contacts, the risk of infection and other adverse reactions is higher with extended wear. We do not generally recommend sleeping with contact lenses in your eyes due to this increased risk, except under unusual circumstances.

Disposable lenses

Disposable soft lenses are intended to be discarded and replaced after you’ve worn them for a specified length of time. This makes them even easier to maintain than regular soft contacts. Disposable lenses are available for replacement every day, every week or two, or every three months. Daily-wear disposables are worn during waking hours only, while extended-wear disposables can be worn for longer periods.

The Fitting Process

The staff and doctors of Coastal Eye want to make sure that your contact lens wearing experience is safe and comfortable. Our goal is to protect your vision for a lifetime.

The following two steps are required in order for us to prescribe contact lenses, and must be repeated on an annual basis:

Routine eye (vision) examination includes diagnostic tests necessary to determine your eyeglass prescription and evaluate the overall health of your eyes. This exam is the same whether you are a contact lens wearer or not. Information from the annual exam provides the starting point for the contact lens fitting. It is recommended that you have a current pair of glasses, and keep them updated even if you wear your contacts most of the time. Emergencies and eye conditions can develop that may prevent you from wearing your contacts, and glasses are essential in those situations.

A contact lens examination and fitting are done after the regular vision exam, and includes:

Medical assessment of how the contact lens fits and affects the cornea, conjunctiva, tear film, and eyelids.
Determination of the most appropriate contact lens (including brand, base curve, diameter, type, material, and power) for your eyes.
The contact lens prescription, which is different from a glasses prescription. The contact lens prescription can only be given after the contact lens examination and fitting, and is good for one year.