How to clean contact lenses with hydrogen peroxide?

Hydrogen peroxide 3% is used to disinfect contact lenses. It helps break up and remove trapped dirt, protein, and fatty deposits (lipids). Hydrogen peroxide is a great way to clean contact lenses as it is easy to do and is recommended for people with sensitive eyes as it is preservative free.

Hydrogen peroxide on its own can cause stinging and burning so it needs to be neutralised for six hours by a platinum neutralising disc into harmless oxygen and sterile water, making it safe to put contact lenses back into your eyes.

How do I clean contact lenses with hydrogen peroxide?

1. Place the contact lenses into the lens basket. Match the curvature of the lens to the basket and ensure the lens is centred. For soft contact lenses, place the right lens into the labelled right and place the left lens into the labelled left.

2. Carefully close the lens basket, do not force shut. Particularly important for large contact lenses such as scleral contact lenses.

3. With 3% hydrogen peroxide, fill the lens case up to the designated line.

4. Place the lens basket case into the lens case, twist to close the lid. You should start to see bubbles forming from the chemical reaction.

5. Let the contact lenses bathe in the neutralising hydrogen peroxide solution for a minimum of six hours.

6. After six hours, the hydrogen peroxide has been neutralised into oxygen and sterile water. The contact lenses have been disinfected and are now safe to put into your eyes. If you are concerned there is any residual non-neutralised hydrogen peroxide, rinse the contact lenses with sterile saline.

7. Discard the solution (which is now sterile water) and let the lens and basket case air dry

What are the available products on the market?‍

• AOSept
• Soleko

Is hydrogen peroxide safe to use?

Hydrogen peroxide is safe to use as long as it is neutralised

Non-neutralised hydrogen peroxide can cause irritation and a burning sensation to the eyes.

The red cap on the hydrogen peroxide bottles means that you should never put non-neutralised hydrogen peroxide into your eyes or use non-neutralised hydrogen peroxide to rinse your contact lenses. Additionally, each bottle comes with its own case so every time you finish a bottle replace the case as the neutralising disc reduces in effectiveness with prolonged use.

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