Contact wearers beware. Improperly cleaning and storing contacts can have negative repercussions, says Prevent Blindness America, a Chicago-based eye health and safety organization. Contact wearers who clean their contacts or storage cases with water, or who swim or shower without removing their lenses are at risk for developing a potentially-blinding infection. Acanthamoeba keratitis, reports Prevent Blindness America’s Web site, is a painful infection of the cornea (the transparent outer covering of the eye). And while the infection is rare in the United States, individuals who wear contacts should pay attention to how they clean and store their lenses nonetheless.

Acanthamoeba keratitis causes corneal scarring at the very least. If left untreated, it can lead to blindness. And it seems people who use contacts are the most at risk if they fail to clean and store their lenses adequately. Water, even if apparently clean, can carry the organism responsible for infection. Therefore, the two greatest risk factors in contracting Acanthamoeba keratitis are, according to Prevent Blindness America, “poor lens hygiene and exposure to water while wearing lenses.”

What are some precautions that can be taken to keep eyes healthy? Cleaning contact lenses and their cases with only contact solution is one way to avoid infection. Another way is to remove contacts before any aquatic activity—even showering.

Prevent Blindness America offers tips on how to ensure that contacts are clean and safe to wear. A few of them include:

•  “Contact lenses should not be rinsed with or stored in water (tap or sterile water).”

• “Contact lens cases should always be cleaned with fresh solution–not water. Then leave the empty case open to air dry.”

• “Do not re-use old solution or ‘top off’ the solution in your lens case.”

For the full story, please visit http://www.preventblindness.org/vlc/ak.html.