Contact lenses almost cost woman use of her eyes

Contact lenses almost cost woman use of her eyes

TAIWAN - A woman surnamed Chen had to undergo surgery for a cornea transplant after she was diagnosed with an infection from misusage of her contact lenses. The infection nearly cost Chen her eyesight.

Due to long working hours, the 22-year-old wore the contacts for an excessive 12 hours. She rushed to the emergency room after her right eye started to swell and cause blurriness in her vision. Chen was diagnosed with a cornea ulcer and was strongly advised to stay for hospital treatment. Her eyesight recovered to 0.02 levels after treatment, nearly the same as being blind. It was only after having the cornea transplant that she recovered her eyesight.

Cathay General Hospital Optometrist Lin Si-yuan warned contact wearers that extensive use may lead to eye infections. Lin said people who pride themselves on prolonging the use of weekly or daily disposable lens are simply "playing games" with their eyesight, and run the risk of losing it.

In response to the lack of eyesight knowledge in general, The Ophthalmological Society of Taiwan has launched a "protection and care for cornea" event, aimed at educating people about healthier eyesight. The event promoted the "Three Cs" of; "Correct" lenses to match their needs; "Care" for their lenses; and "Check" to schedule routine clinical check-ups.

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