Blinded by the lens: Look closely and be warned

NST: KUALA LUMPUR: She slept with her contact lenses on. It turned out to be a costly mistake as the eyes were so badly infected that she became blind on one side.
Aishah (not her real name) suffered from severe cornea ulcer — a common injury among those who fail to follow the correct procedures in the wearing of contact lenses — and had to spend almost a month in hospital.
Things only returned to normal after a cornea transplant. After that, Aishah, 20, vowed never to wear contact lenses again.
Cases like this are becoming a worrying trend, especially among women and schoolgirls, according to health authorities. The Health Ministry has recently set up a task force to look into the problem of cornea ulcer.
Representatives from the ministry, government, private and university hospitals are in the task force.
Eye doctors in the country have also been asked to report cases of corneal ulcer.
This would help them gauge the extent of the problem in the country and also compile data on patients.
Aishah was only 15 when she started wearing lenses and was disciplined in her use for almost a year. But the one slip of wearing them overnight caused the blindness in the left eye when it developed an ulcer.
"It was Hari Raya and I was away from home with friends. Being late, I decided to sleep at my friends’ place. I slept with my contact lenses on," Aishah said. The next day, the eyes became red and irritated.
Yet, she continued wearing the lenses the whole of the next day until she reached home.
By night, the left eye was so badly infected that she had to be rushed to the hospital. A doctor told her that she had a severe cornea ulcer and had to be admitted.
"I was warded for almost a month and seeing no sign of improvement, I was transferred to Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Hospital (HUKM) where I was admitted for two weeks. It was too late. I was blind in the eye.
"I was inconsolable. I cried for days but I saw a ray of hope when the HUKM ophthalmologist told me that I could have a cornea transplant."
Aishah, who is studying at a public university, said she had a cornea transplant done three years ago.
Melissa (also not her real name), 23, is another person who lost her left eye, just two months into wearing lenses. She, too, developed a corneal ulcer and sought treatment at a private clinic.
"It was only after the fourth day, when my condition worsened that the doctor referred me to HUKM."
Melissa said that the ophthalmologists did their best to save her eye but it was too late.
Melissa uses a blank on the affected eye while waiting for a cornea transplant.
HUKM senior consultant specialist and professor Dr Muhaya Mohamad said contact lenses were safe to wear if the wearer strictly maintains stringent lens hygiene.
"All contact lenses are foreign bodies to the eyes. They can and sometimes cause problems.
"However, these complications are fairly uncommon and easily remedied."
What is worrying the health authorities and the ophthalmologists is the increasing number of women, including schoolgirls, coming in with corneal ulcer and other eye complications from the use of contact lenses.
Dr Muhaya, who is president of the Ophthalmological Society of the Malaysian Medical Association, said: "It’s even worrying now with the sale of cosmetic lenses in the market. There are women buying them off the shelf instead of at an optical outlet".
She said an optometrist would advise buyers on the proper use and handling of the lens to avoid infections.
"The risk is greater in soft lens wearers and those wearing lenses on an extended basis."
She said symptoms of acute eye pain, foreign body sensation, discharge and a red eye should warn the wearer to remove the lens and seek immediate medical help.
"Delay in treatment of this condition can lead to corneal scarring or corneal perforation in extreme cases."
It is also important to make sure that contact lenses are stored and cleaned in proper commercially-prepared, sterile solutions.