For the most part, contact lenses are completely safe for your eyes. However, there are instances where eye infections can occur. The main causes for eye infections brought about by contact lenses are poor hygiene in caring for your lenses, sleeping in your lenses, or leaving them in for extended periods of time. Injuries to the eye through playing sport, through pollutants, and through exposing your eyes to water are also risk factors for infection. Read our blog on 'How to Properly Care for Your Contact Lenses' here, for advice on how to minimise your risk of contracting infection. Although sometimes things happen, and you may find yourself waking up with an unwelcoming pain in your eye that may spark initial panic that something isn’t right. But before you start to fret, eye infections are easily treatable, and if treated in a timely manner, they pose low risk of serious complications. In this article, we will advise you the best way to deal with eye infections caused from contact lenses.

Signs you have an infection

The signs to look for if you suspect you have an eye infection include:

- Pain, redness, or swelling of your eye

- Increased sensitivity to light

- Tears or discharge from your eye

- Blurred vision

- Feeling like something is stuck inside your eye

- Itching and burning of your eye

Some of these symptoms can be an immediate reaction to possible causes of eye infections, such as sleeping in your lens or having dry eyes. Sometimes these symptoms will go away after a day and your eyes will return to normal. If these symptoms persist for longer than a day or you experience severe pain, this is a sign you have an infection.

What to do

1. Remove contacts: If your infection is caused by keeping your contacts in your eyes for an extended amount of time, or if they were exposed to water, remove them from your eyes immediately. Be extra careful when removing them, as your eyes may be very sore. If your pain is severe, leave your lenses in, and head directly to the doctors. If your infection is caused by injury through impact on the lens, you could have broken lens stuck inside your eye. If this is the case, carefully inspect your eyes for any signs of your contact lens. If your lens is large enough, with clean and dry hands, guide it with your finger to the bottom part of your eye and remove it like you would a regular lens. Like with the above, if you experience severe pain, do not try to remove, and seek advice from your medical practitioner. If you suspect that you have smaller particles of lens or other irritants stuck inside your eye, you can rinse your eyes with a saline solution and blink repeatedly as an attempt to flush out the particles.

2. Do not rub your eyes: If you suspect you have an eye infection, do not rub your eyes as this will increase the chances of spreading the infection to the other eye if it has not already been infected. Rubbing your eye can also worsen the infection by exposing your eye to more bacteria that may be on your hands. If you suspect there is something stuck inside your eye, rubbing your eyes can also lead to accidental scratching of your cornea. Even if your eyes feel itchy, resist the need to scratch or rub them.

3. Rinse your eyes with saline solution: Saline solution is made up of water and salt which closely resembles a similar concentration to the tears in our eyes, making it an effective irrigation to remove any foreign bodies stuck in our eyes. With its antiseptic properties, saline can kill some of the germs and bacteria in your eye, aiding its healing process. Saline is purely natural and will not do further damage to your eyes.

4. Use warm and cold compresses: Using compresses do not cure eye infections, but they can help to ease symptoms. Use a warm compress to add moisture into your eye which can help to soothe eyes against discomfort. When making your warm compress, ensure it is not too hot, as this can burn and irritate your eyes further. Use a clean cloth and soak in warm water that feels like a comfortable temperature to put over your eye. Cold compresses on the other hand can help to reduce inflammation and itchiness. To make your cold compress, soak your clean cloth in cold water and place it inside a zip lock bag and put in the freezer for a short time until cool (not frozen) to soothe your eye.

5. Keep your infected lenses in their case and take to the doctor: If you have disposed of your lenses that is fine, but keeping them for the doctor to inspect the cultures from the lens, can be useful in determining the type of infection you have and make for effective treatment.

6. Above all, go to the doctor: If you are experiencing severe pain, make a doctor’s appointment immediately. If your symptoms are not severe but are lasting longer than a day, still make an appointment with your doctor, as the longer you leave your symptoms, the worse they can become. Matters of the eye are always serious, and if left untreated can cause serious issues such as loss of sight. Your doctor will either prescribe you some antibiotic eye drops, and topical or oral medication to cure the infection, depending on the type of infection you have. Home remedies may help to ease discomfort, such as compresses and saline solution, but they should not be the sole treatment for eye infections.

Types of eye infections

The main types of contact lens related infections are bacterial, fungal, viral, and parasitic.

- Bacterial Keratitis: Caused by improper contact lens care and eye injury.

- Fungal Keratitis: Caused through lens exposure to tap water or organic matter.

- Viral Keratitis: Spread through having a flareup of the HSV virus that causes cold sores. Can be transmitted if you are in contact with the infected area and touch your eyes.

- Parasitic Keratitis: Spread through bodies of water which include swimming and showering in contact lenses.