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Study: Bad hygiene a problem for nearly all contact lens users

Mary Bowerman
USA TODAY Network
Woman inserting contact lenses.

If you wear contact lenses, chances are you've slept in them and on occasion forgot to disinfect them.

Of the 41 million estimated contact lens wearers in the United States; almost everyone is guilty of breaking the rules when it comes to contact care, according to a new survey from the Centers for Disease Control.

Fifty percent of contact users report wearing their lenses while sleeping and 82.3% of contact wearers keep their contact lens cases longer than recommended, according to the survey.

While sleeping in contacts or "topping off" the solution in the case instead of dumping it out, may seem like a small infraction, it can cause devastating eye infections and even blindness, according to Thomas Steinemann, a clinical spokesman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

"The lens case can get dirty, and germs from the case get onto the lens or vice versa, and eventually they get onto your eye and attack your cornea," Steinemann told USA TODAY Network, adding that infections can happen within 24 hours of wearing a compromised lens.

Contact users answered questions in an online survey administered by the CDC in collaboration with the Contact Lens Assessment Youth group. The survey found that 99% of those surveyed are at risk for serious eye infections because of poor hygienic behaviors.

The CDC noted that contact wearers should keep all water away from contact lenses, discard used disinfectant solution from the case and clean the case each day and replace their case every three months.

One-third of those surveyed reported they sought medical help for red or painful eyes related to wearing contact lenses.

Chad Groeschen, 39, of Cincinnati, Ohio, developed a corneal ulcer infected with Pseudomonas bacteria, after sleeping in extended use contacts for almost a week.

Chad Groeschen, 39, of Cincinnati, Ohio, developed a corneal ulcer infected with Pseudomonas bacteria, after sleeping in extended use contacts for almost a week.

"Halfway through the day my eyes started itching, and I thought it was probably allergies, so I popped them out," he said. "The next morning the vision in my left eye started to turn cloudy."

Within days, Groeschen, who works as a sculptor at a renovation organization, was unable to see out of his left eye. His doctor said he will likely need a corneal transplant to restore his sight.

"The kind of contacts I have are called "Night and Day" contacts, and it was my impression you could leave them in for 30 days straight," he said. "I figured the less I was messing with my eyes, the better."

Steinemann said that even a brief nap in contacts could be a bad idea.

While the contact lens is fairly porous and oxygen can reach the cornea, it still acts as a barrier. When a person sleeps in a pair of contacts, their eyelid acts as a second barrier, according to Steinemann.

"Honestly, if patients ask the safest thing to do I would say take the lens out [when sleeping,]" Steinemann said. "When you have the plastic contact lens over the eye, you are depriving the eye of oxygen but also increasing the risk of germs attacking the cornea."

Steinemann said poor contact lens care is like Russian Roulette.

"People get in a routine and tend to get very comfortable with certain routines and for a while they get away with it, but eventually they wont," he said.

Tips on safe contact use:

• Replace contact lenses on time. "One thing that we see people doing a lot is using the lenses beyond the lifetime of the lens," Steinemann said. "If it's a two-week lens, they keep it four or six weeks, if it's one month, they keep it two." Steinemann said the lens can become worn and more susceptible to germs if they are used beyond the recommended time.

• Avoid water when wearing contact lens. Water from the tap is not clean enough to rinse lenses or cases, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology. The parasite Acanthamoeba can be found in tap water and "can cause severe eye infections resulting in vision loss," according to the academy.

• Do not sleep in contact lenses. The contact lens and your eyelid act as a double barrier, potentially trapping bacteria on the lens directly on your eye.

• Contact wearers should use clean solution each time and lens cases should be discarded after three months.

Follow @MaryBowerman on Twitter.

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