A simple and effective technique for disinfecting hydrophilic contact lenses uses a saturated solution of molecular iodine in water. This technique has disinfected lenses that were incubated in actively growing cultures of bacteria and fungi in concentrations of 10(7) to 10(8) organisms per ml. Ocular tolerance studies showed that lenses disinfected by this method did not damage rabbit cornea, as demonstrated by slit lamp and histologic observations. This method has a built-in safety feature because iodine-soaked lenses are yellow, while lenses rinsed free of iodine are clear.