Care for people wearing contact lenses

Posted in Contact Lenses on September 2, 2008

The use of tap water to clean the eyes can be risky and dangerous to those wearing contact lenses. This is especially true for the areas of southern England and the people in these areas are more likely to pick up an eye infection that could damage their eyesight permanently. This infection is called acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) infection. It is a rare condition that causes pain and irritation in the eyes and also vision loss in serious cases. This problem is being linked to the hardness of water across the country.

A reason given by doctors is that people get infected either because they do not disinfect their lenses properly or that they wear them while taking a shower or swimming. Another side to the story is that hard water is responsible for these as it contains an excess of lime-scale which allows the growth of amoeba. When questioned, most of the people with this infection admitted to having used tap water to clean their eyes.

With the advent of new technologies, such as the LASIK procedure, more and more people with bad eyesight are opting to throw away their spectacles and lenses. This new laser eye surgery is a great option for anyone who wants to get vision correction done as it is gaining popularity. There are several advantages to having LASIK surgery done, as it is a faster method and the eyes heal quicker than with other eye surgery techniques.