Apparatus and method for disinfecting a contact lens and detecting the presence of an oxidative disinfectant

A method for disinfecting a contact lens comprising:

• contacting a contact lens with a liquid medium containing a disinfecting amount of an oxidative contact lens disinfectant at conditions to effectively disinfect said contact lens, said contacting occurring in the presence of a color indicator component adapted to provide a color indication of the presence of said oxidative contact lens disinfectant in said liquid medium, said color indicator component comprising a transition metal component which is present in an amount effective to provide said color indication, is redox active, has an oxidized state and a reduced state and is immobilized on a polymeric matrix material which is and remains insoluble in said liquid medium and is present in an amount effective to act as a cation exchange medium to facilitate immobilizing said transition metal component, said polymeric matrix material being (1) redox active at said conditions and having an oxidized state and a reduced state, provided that said polymeric matrix material in said reduced state is effective to at least facilitate reducing said transition metal component from said oxidized state;
• and (2) a complexing agent at said conditions for said transition metal component, wherein said polymeric matrix material includes phosphorus-containing acid acting ligands and said transition metal component is more strongly immobilized on said polymeric matrix material relative to a substantially identical polymeric matrix material including sulfonic acid ligands instead of said phosphorus-containing acid acting ligands.