Many people wear contact lenses but did you know they could be swimming in bacteria without you ever finding out? If you do not take good care of your lenses, you might end up with grave problems that are hard to solve later on.
The bacteria in your contact lenses can cause severe infections, and they stay in the lenses for a long time, making them significantly dangerous—the most common eye infection is caused by bacteria s staphylococcus aureus and pseudomonas aeruginosa. The latter can cause permanent scarring to the eyes, and vision loss.
However, these problems are easily avoidable; all you need to do is take good care of your lenses and ensure they are cleaned properly. Here are some tips to help you care for your lenses. You may have heard some of them (those never too important to re-emphasize) , and some are new tips that I give based on experience with patients.
- Don’t wear contact lens over 12 hours per day. Never wear them to sleep!
- Don’t handle your lenses with dirty hands. Wash them properly first!
- Don’t use water to rinse your lenses; water contains several pathogens that can cause bacterial growth.
- Please do not re-use contact lens solution as it may be contaminated.
- Contact lens care is more than soaking. Do rub the lens in circular motion in your palm for 20 seconds with a few drops of solution after each wear, or invest in an automatic device such as VueSonic Contact Lens Cleaning Device. This device is a much better alternative to hand-rubbing and does not cause damage to your contacts.
- Dispose the lens as needed. When a lens feels irritating, uncomfortable, or blurry, even after being cleaned by VueSonic, then it is an indication that the lens needs to be replaced, even if it is not yet the official time for disposal.
- If you face any of the following symptoms, go to an ophthalmologist immediately.
- Redness in eyes
- Pain or any sort of blurry vision
- Constant feeling of having something in your eye
- Tearing in the eye
- Increased sensitivity to light
