Wearing too many contact lenses can cause perforation of the cornea?!

In Fuzhou, Fujian, dancer Xiaowen worked for nearly 10 hours wearing colored contact lenses in order to rush to a performance. Suddenly, she felt a stinging pain in her eyes and couldn't stop crying. After going to the hospital for treatment, she was diagnosed with keratitis and corneal ulcer. If she had not gone to the hospital for examination in time, Xiaowen would have been very likely to have a corneal perforation.

Source | Screenshot of Shanhai video

Many people know that cosmetic contact lenses are a type of contact lenses, also known as colored contact lenses. Although wearing cosmetic contact lenses can magnify the human eye's visual effect by 1.5 times and make the eyes look brighter and more outstanding, if you wear this kind of "cosmetic glasses" for a long time, your cornea will be damaged to a certain extent.

Source | hippopx

According to the survey data of CBNData (China Business Data Center) in May 2022, more than 70% of consumers have experienced eye health problems while wearing cosmetic contact lenses, and more than 80% of users do not go to the hospital for regular eye examinations. This means that most consumers of cosmetic contact lenses in my country lack scientific knowledge of cosmetic contact lens products and awareness of eye protection.

1. Contact lenses are not suitable for everyone

If you have eye inflammation , you should temporarily avoid using contact lenses - not only will they be uncomfortable to wear, but they may also aggravate eye diseases;

Secondly, if you are allergic to protective solution, care solution, etc. , you can basically say goodbye to contact lenses;

In addition, if your working environment contains a lot of smoke and dust or volatile substances , it is not suitable to wear contact lenses;

Also, for those who are not very aware of hygiene , please forgive your contact lenses and yourself;

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Finally, it is best for minors and people over 60 years old not to wear contact lenses. The body functions of minors have not yet fully developed, and wearing contact lenses may cause irreversible damage to the eyes. The elderly have less tear secretion, and wearing contact lenses can easily cause dry eyes, thereby increasing the risk of eye diseases.

2. Correct wearing and care of contact lenses

The first and most important thing is to go to the hospital to check whether your eyes are suitable for wearing contact lenses; then the contact lenses fitting examination. After confirming that you are suitable for wearing contact lenses and fitting the lenses, you should pay attention to the correct wearing and care of contact lenses:

1. Care method: First, use the 7-step hand washing method to thoroughly clean your hands before touching the lens; then put the lens in the palm of your hand, drop the care solution into the contact lens, and rub the lens from the middle to the edge with your fingertips, paying attention to gentle movements; then rinse with care solution, and finally put it in the contact lens case. After cleaning, let the care solution cover the lens and soak it for at least 4 hours.

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2. Do not wear contact lenses for too long . It is best not to wear contact lenses for more than 8 hours a day, otherwise it will easily cause corneal hypoxia. Also, remember to blink your eyes frequently and try to relax your eyes every hour to avoid eye fatigue.

3. Pay attention to hygiene . Keep the contact lens case in a dry environment and disinfect it every week, otherwise it is easy to breed bacteria. The contact lens case cannot be used all the time. Remember to replace it every 3 months. Even if you don't wear it for a long time, you should replace the care solution every day. In addition, you should also avoid scratching or puncturing the lens with long nails.

4. Pay attention to the expiration date . Contact lenses also have a certain expiration date. Do not use expired products and remember to replace them in time when they expire.

5. Wear your glasses before putting on makeup . If you really need to put on makeup, you should put on your contact lenses before putting on makeup; before removing makeup, you should take off your contact lenses. This is mainly to prevent the residual cosmetics and makeup remover on your face and hands from contaminating the contact lenses.

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Contact lenses should not be worn in the following situations:

1. Cycling for a long time. When you ride a bicycle, the air around the human body flows faster, and some of the moisture in the lens will be taken away, causing the lens to become dry and hard.

2. Sickness. When the human body is sick, the immune system is at a low level. If you wear contact lenses at this time, the risk of eye infection is greater.

3. During pregnancy. During pregnancy, women's endocrine system will change. The cornea will become thicker due to tissue edema and will be in a relatively hypoxic state. Wearing contact lenses at this time will aggravate the degree of corneal hypoxia and may cause corneal damage.

4. Taking an airplane. The air in the cabin is dry, which will evaporate the moisture on the surface of the eyeball. The eyes are dry, and the contact lenses will become hard in the absence of tears to moisten them, which is very likely to cause damage to the corneal epithelium and even fall off.

5. Bathing and swimming: If shampoo or swimming pool water accidentally flows into your eyes, it will not only contaminate the lenses, but also cause eye discomfort and infection.

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3. Try to choose short-term contact lenses

Try to choose short-disposable or even daily-disposable contact lenses, which are safer and more hygienic. Many people like to pursue high water content, but high water content is not suitable for everyone. Although high-water content lenses are soft, comfortable and have low foreign body sensation, after a period of time, the lenses will absorb some tears to maintain their own moisture. Therefore, people with underdeveloped lacrimal glands and easily dry eyes are not suitable for high-water content contact lenses, which will cause the eyes to become even drier.

Before wearing contact lenses, you should choose lenses with different water content and thickness according to your own conditions, and never buy them casually.

One last tip: for those who wear glasses or contact lenses for a long time, you must remember to go to the hospital for regular eye examinations to understand your eye health and changes in degree. It is most important to make timely adjustments to protect your eyes!

Source | Unsplash