hello everyone
My eye doc wrote 2 specific contact lens brands on my scrip - accuvue advance for my left eye, and B&L SL66 Toric for my right eye. My question is, I want to buy online and have noticed some other brands slightly cheaper than the ones he wrote down (this is for a refill, I've worn the ones he wrote down and am fine with their comfort, generally) but would like to try some other brands to see if they may be more comfortable, cheaper, etc.
As long as I match the contact lens dimensions exactly with what he wrote on my scrip (CYL, SPH, Axis, Base, etc.) , is it safe/ok to try different brands without consulting my eye Dr. first and specifically requesting to, or am I stuck with the exact brands he wrote down? I guess my main concern is why did he write those 2 specific brands down instead of just writing down the dimensions alone?
And here's a second slightly related question: trying to dig up all of the matching brands has become quite a hassle online. I was wondering if there is an online search engine or similar that I can just enter my contact lens size/dimensions into and it'll bring back results of only the brands and particular lens that match those exact dimensions? It sure would be an enormous time saver!
Thanks
Definitely don't try different brands unless the doctor lets you do so in his office. They feel REALLY different regardless of the prescription. They just fit differently etc. But ask the doctor to let you try on some other ones. They usually have a bunch of samples in their office unless your prescription is really unusual (and perhaps it is). Hope that helps.
Hey there fjahan35. Good questions.
First of all, wearing contact lenses is not about being cheap. You can buy cheap laundry detergent or bread, but don't skimp on your contact lenses. Secondly, a prescription typically includes the brand of contact lenses as well as the sphere, cylinder and so on. That means you can only get the brand that your doctor prescribed to you. If you can't afford that brand, talk to your doctor about a different prescription. If you order from a reputabe place or website, they will call your doctor to confirm that the information that they got is correct. You really don't want to deal with any companies that don't do this step.
As for searching for all contact lenses with the numbers on your prescription, Lens.com has a search function, but I don't think you can put in all the information, (sphere, cylinder, and so on) at once. I think you have to go one at a time. Once again, though, if you find contacts that have the right numbers, you still have to have a prescription for them. Good luck.
Taken
I'm not for sure positive, but I think you can use any brand as long as the sizes are the same.