RGP vs. Soft Contact Lenses - Which Is Better for You?

Are you confused about whether RGP (Rigid Gas Permeable) or soft contact lenses are better for you? Let us find out in this article the pros and cons of both types of lenses and figure out which one is suitable for you.

The soft contact lenses are preferred by most people as the popular notion is that a hard lens may not be comfortable. Both lens types are equally comfortable to wear. The answer therefore is not very obvious and a lot of other factors need to be taken into consideration.

Both lens types are effective in correcting vision problems. But we are looking for the better one! It has been it has been found that the RGP lenses provide a much better vision when they are properly fitted to the eye. Soft lenses do not have so much clarity in the dark as RGP lenses do. One thing is for sure. In case your job requires that you rely a lot on your eyes, then RGP lenses are a better option.

Next thing that needs to be considered while comparing the two is overall effect on the health of the eyes. Which one is healthier for your eye? Two important considerations here are the tendency of a lens to accumulate protein deposits and the capability of the lens to absorb oxygen.

RGP lenses are less prone to protein build-up than soft lenses. This is not too much of an issue if the soft lenses that you wear are of the disposable variety. RGP lenses absorb 2 to 3 times more oxygen than soft lenses do. Only silicon hydrogel variety of soft lenses has the same oxygen absorbing capacity of RGP lenses. Thus RGP lenses overall have a much lesser risk of corneal inflammation than soft lenses.

RGP lenses are much more expensive than the soft lenses. Since RGP lenses are not disposable, the loss when the wearer looses a lens or accidentally breaks it is much more than in the case of soft lenses. However RGP lens may prove to be economical in the long run.

RGP lenses are much smaller than soft lenses. It takes around a week for the wearer to get used to RGP lenses.

Now that we have made the comparison, it is up to you to decide which lens type is the better one, for you.