Imagine that you decide to go to your family doctor for symptoms of high blood pressure. After listening to you report your symptoms, he or she performs a short examination and confirms your original suspicion--that you do, in fact, have high blood pressure. So, as expected, your doctor writes and hands you a prescription. Hoping the order is for a medication on your insurance company's formulary, you glance at the paper and discover that your doctor has prescribed you contact lenses.
Say what?
This scenario is surprisingly close to becoming a reality. After briefly falling out of fashion favor--probably due to permanent corrective surgeries like RK and LASIK--contacts are poised to make a comeback. Thanks to scientific advances in microscopic nanotechnology and hydrophilic polymers, the applications for contacts are expanding into the realm of science-fiction. Here are just a few of the unexpected, unusual contexts that will soon be associated with contact lenses:
Military Science
During its next military excursion, the US may deploy an army of cat-soldiers. Night-vision contacts will give ground infantry the ability to see at night for reconnaissance or even hand-to-hand combat. The same technology will allow helicopter pilots to navigate through the night better. Since recent--and possibly future--military endeavors have been concentrated in the deserts of the Middle East, any improvement over the bulky, noisy night-vision goggles currently in use would incur a substantial tactical advantage over American foes.
Virtual Reality
Augmented reality devices have already begun to permeate the consumer market, typically in the form of large glasses that can project screen displays, accept commands, and feature apps. Augmented reality contacts, however, will also be able to fit inside your eye. They could be used as stand-alone devices, or synchronized with your tablet, laptop, or smartphone.
Medicine
As noted above, the sci-fi contacts of the future will be potent drug-delivery devices. Able to administer regular or emergency medications, these specialized lenses could offer low--yet very potent--doses of medicine that would be absorbed into the blood vessels of your eyes. Because the eyes are so close to and interconnected with the brain, these pharmaceuticals could work quickly and efficiently. In addition to the drug-delivery application, contacts can also be used to monitor medical functions such as blood pressure, glucose levels, etc.
Perhaps there will be innovative usage combinations as well. Soldiers may wear night-vision contacts that also monitor their health, and gamers may be able to take their medications via augmented reality lenses--so that they won't have to get up from their console to take an old-fashioned pill! So, don't give up on contacts yet: fancy corrective surgery is about to become just another passing fad--as "modern" as those hard lenses your parents wore back in the 1950s. Get ready to make contact with the future!
Share10 December 2014
My parents taught me healthy eating habits and I played outside a lot as a kid. Once I was old enough to work, I got a job as a waiter at a restaurant and kept waiting tables throughout high school and college. After college, I got my very first desk job, and my health started declining. I soon realized that even though I had never stepped foot in a gym, I was living a sedentary lifestyle for the first time in my life. I wasn't getting exercise playing outside or running around at work, so I decided to commit to going to the gym. My health began to improve and I now greatly enjoy bodybuilding. I know many other people are in ill health and can't figure out why, so I decided to start a blog to share my health tips and inspire everyone improve their health!
