Infection rate with 30-day continuous wear comparable to rates with

The corneal infection rate associated with 30-day extended-wear contact lenses made from silicone hydrogel is comparable to rates reported with older lens types worn for fewer consecutive 24-hour periods, according to a study.

Oliver Schein, MD, PhD, and colleagues at the Wilmer Eye Institute in Baltimore studied 6,425 patients who were prescribed extended-wear silicone hydrogel lenses to be worn for 30 consecutive days. The mean age of the patients was 35 years old, and 64% were women. At 3 and 12 months after enrollment, data regarding the patients’ contact lens wearing schedules, discontinuation of lens wear and the occurrence of red and painful eye infection were gathered and analyzed.

At 12 months, 80% of participants were still wearing the lenses and had worn them for 3 or more weeks continuously. The overall annual rate of evident corneal infection was 18 per 10,000, according to a press release from Wilmer. Two cases of corneal infection with partial loss of vision and eight cases without vision loss were reported.

The rate of infection was lower for users wearing the lenses for at least 3 weeks than for those who wore the lenses for less continuous time.

The study is published in the December issue of Ophthalmology.