Abstract
Although the concept of contact lenses for therapeutic and refractive purposes is very old, the real development of contact lenses started at the end of the 19th century. The original contact lenses were rigid and made of glass.
The scientific work of Otto Wichterle and Drahoslav Lím brought the main breakthrough in this field when they invented the method of making soft contact lenses using clear medical polymers. In spite of serious political pressure in the former totalitarian Czechoslovakia, Wichterle and his team were able to perform scientific research that had a world-wide impact.
His findings pushed the development of contact lenses forward and made contact lenses comfortable, safe and affordable.