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Contact lens wearers do not perceive risks of exposure to water
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SAN ANTONIO – Water exposure during contact lens wear is common and associated with increased case contamination, and wearers who participate in water-exposing activities do not perceive the risk involved, Nicole Carnt, BOptom, PhD, FBCLA, FAAO, said during her talk at the American Academy of Optometry annual meeting.
Carnt and fellow researchers studied the effect of contact lens wearers’ water exposure on storage case contamination. Secondarily, they looked at attitudes toward water contact behaviors and how they related to contact lens storage case contamination.
One hundred daily wear reusable contact lens wearers completed a self-administered contact lens hygiene questionnaire.
Researchers collected used contact lens storage cases, which underwent microbial analysis using a bacterial ATP assay.
A water content behavior scoring system was created (0: excellent, 10: poor) to determine the overall water exposure during contact lens wear.
Average contact lens storage case contamination was 3.12 LogCFU/mL.
About 84% of participants wore soft contact lenses, and two-thirds were female, according to the study.
Water contact while wearing contact lenses included swimming (49 subjects), swimming without swimming goggles (32 of those 49) and showering (43 subjects). One-third of participants used wet hands to handle contact lenses, and 17 used tap water to rinse their storage cases. Using tap water to rinse (five patients) and store (one patient) contact lenses were the least prevalent practices, according to researchers.
Overall, water contact behavior score was significantly associated with contact lens storage case contamination.
Showering and swimming while wearing lenses were popular behaviors.
“We found that showering while wearing lenses was an independent variable for contact lens case contamination,” Carnt said.
They asked participants to report on what they think the most important risk factor is for contact lens hygiene. Most said poor hand hygiene, she said.
“Contact lens wearers who participate in water exposure, like showering or swimming in lenses, perceive it to be less important or not a risk factor in the onset of disease,” she said.
This study is part of ongoing research at the University of New South Wales. In the next phase, they will be looking at the effect of education on contact lens wearers’ hygiene, through the use of a “no water” warning symbol. – by Abigail Sutton
Reference:
Arshad M, et al. The effect of contact lens wearers’ water exposure on storage case contamination. Presented at: American Academy of Optometry annual meeting; San Antonio; November 7 – 10, 2018.
Disclosure: Carnt reports no relevant financial disclosures.