For Pete’s Sake, Don’t Sleep or Swim in Your Contact Lenses

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday released a report saying that there have been various cases where serious eye damage was reported after the person misused them.

“Contact lenses are a safe and effective form of vision correction when worn and cared for as recommended”, said Michael Beach, Ph.D., director of CDC’s Healthy Water Program.

A CDC spokesperson says while only a small percentage of those who wear contacts get serious eye infections, this serves as a reminder for all contact lens wearers to take simple steps to prevent an infection.

More than 1 in 4 reports mentioned contact lens habits that are known to increase the chance of getting an infection..

The government report also found some people had to go to the eye doctor daily or use eye drops hourly to treat infections.

Misusing contact lenses also included wearing them for more than the recommended time period or even sleeping with the lenses still in your eyes.

Almost 41 million Americans who wear lenses and benefit from its use may be putting themselves at risk by not following contact lens use instructions.

Whether eye infections related to contact lenses are minor, or have led to long-lasting injury, they can cause pain and disrupt everyday activities.

Be sure to clean your lenses thoroughly on the schedule provided by your eye doctor.

Bartlett recommended emptying any old solution and then letting the contact case dry before adding new solution.

The first is not to sleep with your contact lenses in.

According to the CDC, people should not keep their contact lenses in while sleeping, because doing so raises the risk of eye infection by 6 to 8 times.

“Additionally, prompt reporting of adverse events can help [the] FDA identify and understand the risks associated with the use of contact lenses”. Every eye has a different compound, and bacteria by sharing your contact lenses you could be exposing your eye to different infections.

Contact lens wearers must be vigilant in taking proper care of their lenses in order to prevent infections, the CDC warns in a new report.

In addition, the FDA has put out a cautionary recommendation for decorative contact lenses that can change people’s eye color. Failure to do so increases the risk of complications and eye problems. Using old or incorrect lens-storage solutions can up infection risks, he said.

“There are many contact lenses users who are not aware of these recommendations”, he said.