Problems with Overusing Your Contact Lenses

Contact lenses have become so comfortable that you forget to take them off when going to sleep at night. The material has become more breathable, you spend more to pay for them and we do love to have clear eyesight all the time. Why wouldn’t we want to sometimes overuse them?

The reasons are plentiful when you overwear your contact lenses. It can cause bacteria to grow in or around your eyes, get eye infections, or develop giant papillary conjunctivitis.

Lack of oxygen creates corneal hypoxia, the inability for oxygen to adequately penetrate the cornea. The contact lens acts as a boundary between the eye and the oxygenated tears, and an ‘old’ contact lens will reduce the flow of oxygen to the cornea. That is why it is always advised only to wear your contact lenses for up to eight hours and not exceed this time. When you overwear your contact lenses, it sometimes feels dry enough so that it feels like it’s going to pop out. This means it is too dry and you must take them off.

Additional symptoms of oxygen deprivation in the eyes include blurred vision, a burning sensation, excessive tearing, and a scratchy feeling. Mild cases typically result in swelling in the epithelial layer of the cornea and temporary blurred vision. More severe hypoxia can lead to the death of epithelial cells.

Corneal infection is also an effect of overusing contact lenses and the symptoms is a burning sensation in your eyes called corneal keratitis. Contaminated contacts and contacts that are not properly cleaned are also a cause for infection.

Overusing your contact lenses is also associated with giant papillary conjunctivitis. About 5% of people who wear soft contact lenses get GPC in which the symptoms include the eyelid getting red, swollen, and irritated.

So please be sure to not overuse your contact lenses even though they are comfortable. Many eye issues can arise. You only have one pair of eyes so be mindful of excessive contact wear.