Contact Lens Wearers beware

[JOC]

In my twenties I wore soft contacts for about 5 years - I absolutely loved them (I loathe my eye glasses with an absolute passion).  However, those were the early days of soft lenses and not enough oxygen got to my eye and caused blood vessels to grow towards my lens.  Without stopping using them the lens could have become compromised and I would have 'seen' the blood vessels.  So I had to stop.  Even with todays modern really thin lenses I could have problems.  I have sets of dailies and just wear them for things like skiing and although they say you shouldn't I also wear them swimming (on account that I can't see much if I don't and splashed glasses are useless), but I take them out after I've let the pool.  In terms of contamination, if you are aspeptic with dailies they shouldn't contact water.  I wonder if the OP got contaminated whilst wearing them whilst swimming, or perhaps they were near a water spray - there have been stories in the media lately of people catching legionnaires disease from the spray of things like hosepipes left with water in them lying in a warm place for a couple of weeks, or shower fitments which have been left unused whilst folks have been on holiday and then the residual water being inhaled as a spray the next time the shower was used.  Given such instances I can well imagine amoeba growing in similarly left water and if splashed in the face I can imagine amoeba migrating across soft contacts.  Mind you similarly I could imagine amoeba entering the eye through similar routes even without lenses in place.

As a general rule, please just be careful with water spray from hoses until they are full of fresh water, shower fitments - until full of fresh water, or even the spray of what you are washing down - i.e. I have been known to pressure wash the green stuff of our mobile home - loads of spray in that process and the potential for inhalation and contact with mucus membranes (eyes), I really should wear safety specs, but I bet I am one of thousands that tends not to.

[djpaul]

Thank you for all your comments. I will keep you informed on my progress. 

 

[Waldemar]

Well... life is a deadly disease isn't it...

I am very sorry for your bad fortune, but... how much of it was your own doing? This was not the whole story... you are talking about water...
Water is the main source of life on this planet. Everything thrives on it.. so yes, amoeba too. How clean were your hands?

Washing contact lenses with any kind of water, tapwater, bottled water, distilled water or even double distilled water is not a good practice.
Special recommended contactlens cleaning fluids are available for that. If you do not follow the rules of advised common sense, don't blame it on the item ...

I am sorry if this sounds a bit harsh and maybe even rude, but I really do not think that such a rare event can be a reason to condemn a very nice alternative for poor or bad vision. Crossing the street kills a lot of people... should we all stay on just one side because some people do not watch what they are doing?

I really hope you will fully recover from your infection, but don't loose sight of reality.

[Louis D]

5 hours ago, Waldemar said:

Well... life is a deadly disease isn't it...

I am very sorry for your bad fortune, but... how much of it was your own doing? This was not the whole story... you are talking about water...
Water is the main source of life on this planet. Everything thrives on it.. so yes, amoeba too. How clean were your hands?

Washing contact lenses with any kind of water, tapwater, bottled water, distilled water or even double distilled water is not a good practice.
Special recommended contactlens cleaning fluids are available for that. If you do not follow the rules of advised common sense, don't blame it on the item ...

I am sorry if this sounds a bit harsh and maybe even rude, but I really do not think that such a rare event can be a reason to condemn a very nice alternative for poor or bad vision. Crossing the street kills a lot of people... should we all stay on just one side because some people do not watch what they are doing?

I really hope you will fully recover from your infection, but don't loose sight of reality.

Then there are the Texas brain eating amoeba.

[trynda1701]

Glad you're on the road to recovery and that it continues, Paul.

 

I've worn glasses since primary school (I'm now in my fifties). When contacts had become common, the opticians I'd always been going to asked if I'd considered contacts. I said that personally, like others have said, I'm squeemish about touching my eye, plus, when I get something in an eye, either an eyelash or grit, even when I know I've got rid of it, it still feels like something is there. So no thanks. She said she agreed with that, plus she said it saved on all the expense of cleaning fluids!

 

So there you go!

[mikey2000]

Sorry to hear of the parasites - it's great that you are on the mend :-).  I went to my opticians a while back to ask for a contact lens trial.   They asked why and I said it was to help me keep track of the kids when in the swimming pool.   They told me about the parasite and showed me the door.

 

but not before they sold me some prescription goggles ;-)

 

interesting to think of glasses as eye protection though.

 

personally, I find glasses and telescopes a pain (especially my polar scope with a hard metal eyepiece).  I have astigmatism as well as being short sighted but I often take the glasses off and just put up with the slight blur from the astigmatism.

[Louis D]

10 hours ago, mikey2000 said:

personally, I find glasses and telescopes a pain (especially my polar scope with a hard metal eyepiece).

That's mostly because of the short eye relief of the polar scope's eyepiece.  I can't use a unit power finder like a Telrad without glasses because the sky is blurry.  However, I'm having more trouble flipping upside-down as I age to look through it, so I added green laser sights to my scopes so I can just point and shoot, so to speak.  I never use them if I hear or see a plane nearby.  I don't want men it dark suits showing up at my door.

[Swoop1]

17 minutes ago, Louis D said:

That's mostly because of the short eye relief of the polar scope's eyepiece.  I can't use a unit power finder like a Telrad without glasses because the sky is blurry.  However, I'm having more trouble flipping upside-down as I age to look through it, so I added green laser sights to my scopes so I can just point and shoot, so to speak.  I never use them if I hear or see a plane nearby.  I don't want men it dark suits showing up at my door.

Too late.

"Tell Zed we found him......"

[25585]

On 28/07/2017 at 17:54, djpaul said:

Hi All

 

Sorry i haven't been in touch for the past 4 months

In late March i was diagnosed with a very serious eye infection which has almost cost me my eye sight called Acanthomeba Kerratitis

Search the web and you will see how bad this infection can be.... I was very very lucky to be diagnosed within 3 days of feeling pain in my eye

Im still having treatment but at the beginning i couldn't see more than 6 foot in front of me due to a virus where parasites were basically attacking my Cornea 

Since then i have been on toxic eye drops to kill the virus.

IF ANY OF YOU GUYS WEAR CONTACT LENSES MY ADVISE IS STOP WEARING THEM NOW

Amoeba are single cell creatures that are found in all water and oceans , any contact with water on your lens means they will burry into your cornea

Generally these critters wont attack you but when trapped within your contact lens they will begin to eat away at your eye.

I still cant use my telescope but my sight is much much better now.

Im left with scarring on the surface of my eye that scatters the light 

 

I did manage to use my binos this week and im hopping my sight becomes good enough in the future to carry on with astronomy

 

Regards Paul

Paul I know of your pain! At work I had 2 colleagues who wore contacts & both got the infection, both from swimming pools. My brother stopped wearing contacts due to iritis.

I hope you make a full recovery.

[25585]

On 02/08/2017 at 20:30, Swoop1 said:

Too late.

"Tell Zed we found him......"

Have you considered a rifle telescopic sight? Huge eye relief, interchangeable reticules on some and objectives can be 60mm. Also zoom models made.

[steve_bham]

Sorry to hear your news and glad you are in the mend. I have used contact lenses for years now and as soon as you get them they warn you not to wear them in the shower or swimming.

as long as you follow the advise and correctly clean them they are safe to wear.