Eye Burns Linked to the Misuse of Contact Lens Cleaners

Wisley Leandre
Capstone Research Paper
Career Technical Teacher: Ms. Marta Valdes
Language Arts Teacher: Dr. Treesey Weaver
19 February 2015

Eye Burns Linked to the Misuse of Contact Lens Cleaners

This research paper mainly focuses on eye burns that occur due to the misuses of contact
lens cleaners, but it goes in depth and goes over topics such as the definition of an eye injury,
chemicals used in contact lens cleaners, how those chemicals affect the eye, and the criteria for
lens cleaning recommendations. In addition, it will cover ways to prevent injuries to the
eye and how companies and doctors should warn the patients of the dangers of using lens
cleaners improperly. This paper will provide information to prevent future injuries and eye burns
due to the misuse of contact lens cleaners. It will give awareness to doctors on teaching how to
us contact cleaners properly and also show patients the dangers of using them improperly and not

adhering to contact lens cleaning regimen.

Outline
Thesis Statement: Because of an increase of burning eyes and emergency injuries, companies
and doctors should warn patients of the dangers of using contact lens cleaners improperly.
I.

Introduction
A. Defining an eye injury
B. Chemicals used in contact lens cleaners

II.

C. How do lens cleaners or chemicals in cleaners affect the eye?

Allergies associated with Contact lens cleaners
A. Side effects of contact lens cleaners
B. Cost effectiveness of contact lens cleaners

III.

C. Adherence to contact lens cleaning regimen

Criteria for lens cleaning recommendations
A. Doctor prescribed
B. Should they be over the counter or prescribed

IV.

C. Ease of use
Solutions
A. Better instruction of contact cleaner use at point of sale
B. Patient awareness
C. Prescribing cleaning solution thats easy to use, effective, and doesnt cause allergic

V.

reaction to patients
Conclusion
A. Because of an increase of burning eyes and emergency injuries, companies and
doctors should warn patients warn patients of the dangers of using contact lens cleaners
improperly.
B. The suggested solutions will help to prevent less emergency situations and promote

better use for not only lens cleaning solutions, but also contact lenses.
C. Inaction will result in more eye injuries and will leave people ignorant to the
ramifications of not using lens cleaning solutions properly.
D. Information on what other materials could replace the harmful chemicals that cause
these injuries and irritation to the eye could also help prevent emergencies in the future.
E. Patients adhering to instructions on to properly use lens cleaning solutions, doctors
giving thorough instructions, and companies putting labels that carry a strong caution on
dangers of using the lens solutions will all help to better the situation.

Leandre 1
Eye Burns Linked to the Misuse of Contact Lens Cleaners
What could really be called an eye injury? A persons eye becoming red, a cyst, a stye, or
Something such as the eye starting to hurt due to someone rubbing it to hard? The answer is
neither. An eye injury is damage or trauma inflicted to the eye by external means including both
surface injuries and intraocular injuries (Ophthalmology Book). In the case of injuries due to
misuse of contact cleaning solutions, the external object are the chemicals in the contact lens
cleaner. Chemicals can burn your eyes. The pain from the chemicals burning your eye may cause
you to close your eyes. When you close your eyes, the irritant, or the chemicals, become trapped
in the eye and damage the eye more. This could severely damage the eye and cause loss in
vision.
In contact lens cleaning solutions, there are many chemicals involved that keep the
a contact clean and helps avoid infections. Contact lens solutions contain two major ingredients
surfactants, composed of hydrophilic and hydrophobic ends and disinfectants, which are
Biguanides, polyquaterium and peroxide (Sindt). Myristarnidopropyl and Dimethylamin are
also used in many lens cleaning solutions (Stuart). If the contact lens cleaning solution
is used improperly the chemicals that are supposed to provide protection from infections will
cause harm to the eye. These solutions could be real harmful to the eye if used incorrectly.
Even though the lens solutions are supposed to benefit the eye and prevent eye infections
by keeping contact lenses clean chemicals in them could cause harm to the eye. There are many
potential negative effects to a lens cleaning solution. Allergic reaction, dry eyes, and toxic
keratopathy are some of the many negative effects. Toxic Keratophy is when a toxic substance
like a contact lens cleaner, peroxide, or preservative comes in direct contact with the eye (Sindt).
A patient could be allergic to the

Leandre 2
lens solution, which will result in hyperemia, fine papillary changes of the tarsal plate,
conjuctival hyperemia, chemosis and limbitis (Sindt).
Sometimes it isnt because of the misuse of the cleaning solution. Sometimes it can be
due to an allergic reaction to the chemicals in solution. A small percentage of lens wearers
develop an eye allergy to the chemicals present in the lens cleaning solution. Dr. Deborah S.
Jacob, during an interview conducted by Annie Stuart, said, Patients with a history of atopy,
allergy, eczema, or prior contact lensrelated problems causing them to be more easily triggered
into sensitivity or an allergic reaction (Stuart). The sorts of allergic reactions that occur are
Allergic conjunctivitis, Giant Papillary Conjunctivitis, and the other allergic reactions mentioned
earlier in this paper is some of the most common to occur due to an eye allergy from the lens
solution. In addition to being red, the eyes may be constantly weepy, itchy, and irritated,
making it difficult for the patient to continue with lens wear, Dr. Anne E. Fung said in an
interview conducted by Annie Stuart (Stuart). Most allergies occur because of t= the bodies
negative reaction to the substance. These allergies might occur due to an immune response to
chemical irritants or sensitivity to the cleaning solution (Stuart).
Like many other medications out there, contact lens cleaning solutions also have side
effects to them. Serious side effects in cleaning solutions such as ReNu with MoistureLoc
include fusarium keratis, serious eye infection, or vision loss. (Bausch and Lomb).
When thinking in terms of cost effectiveness, are contact lens cleaners worth the money?
Without contact lens cleaners, contacts would become dry and infected, leaving someones eye
prone to infection. So contact cleaners are worth the money people pay for because without them
peoples eyes would be harmed by the bacteria and other things picked up by contact lenses.
The best and sure way to prevent burning eyes and emergency eye injuries due to contact
lens solution is by following the cleaning regimen. Sometimes it isnt the solution thats the

Leandre 3
problem, sometimes its due to the carelessness of patients and them not adhering to the lens
cleaning regimen. Adhering to the cleaning regimen could save you a lot of trouble and prevent
emergency situations occurring. Adhering to doctor specific instructions on cleaning your lenses
could also prevent allergic reactions. So it isnt always the doctor or the companies fault
sometimes its the patients. When patients dont adhere to the regimen, they usually dont know
how to properly use the cleaning solution. A patient not knowing how to properly use the cleaner
would sometimes would sometimes immediately put on a contact that has been soaked in a
cleaning solution with 3% hydrogen peroxide in it causing excruciating pain to the eye and
sometimes emergency situations. Dr. Thomas Steinemann, a clinical correspondent for the
American Academy for Ophthalmology and a professor of ophthalmology at Metro Health
Center in Cleveland, in an interview with NBC contributor Trevor Stokes, said, I hate to say it,
but the burden of responsibility is on the user, Steinemann said, If you dont know what youre
doing, you shouldnt be doing it (Stokes). The blame isnt always on the doctor or the company
that makes the solution, sometimes its the patients fault.
Just like patients are prescribed certain medications for their specific ailments, Contact
lens cleaners are prescribed and recommended for specific types of contact lenses or to
accommodate the patient so no allergic reactions occur. For a cleaner to be prescribed it has to,
of course, get the job that it was to do get done. If its supposed to remove protein from the lens
it needs to do so effectively. An example of criteria for a lens cleaner being recommended is
Hydrogen Peroxide solutions systems being recommended instead of multipurpose solutions, due
to the fact that the wearer may be sensitive to the preservatives in the solution or has sensitivity
reactions (Stuart).
A doctor prescribed medication, or in this instance a doctor prescribed contact lens
cleaning solution, is used specifically to accommodate the patients allergies, if he or she has any

Leandre 4
for that specific type of contact lens. A prescribed contact lens cleaner could be prescribed due
to allergic reactions to other cleaning solutions, for the comfort and biocompatibility, and
efficacy of disinfection (Eiden). Everyones body is different and everyone has their
specifications when it comes to a prescribed medication. When prescribing a cleaning solution
you have to consider all these factors including patient considerations, as they can affect the
contact lens wearing experience, such as price and ease of use (Eiden).
Lens cleaning solutions should be prescribed rather than over the counter.
A Patient who is not prescribed a contact lens solution or receives no explanation
as to why a certain solution is best is unprepared to make an informed decision
when confronted with an entire store aisle of options. An ill-informed patient may
resort to picking a product based solely on the sale price or available coupons.
Choosing paper towels based on price may not have long term consequences, but
choosing a contact lens solution using this method can (Eiden).
Ease of use is basically how easy it is to use the lens cleaning solution. Ease of use is
something patients really prefer when receiving a prescription. Patients dont want to spend 15
minutes figuring out how to clean a contact lens and another 5 minutes actually cleaning the
lenses. This makes the patient not want to use the solution at all or use it improperly. Thats why
the doctor needs to consider patients considerations when giving a prescription. This save the
patient a lot of trouble and makes life easier.
There are many solutions to decreasing the amount of emergency injuries to the eye and
burning eyes, but the easiest ways are by giving better instruction of contact lens cleaner,
companies and doctors giving warning of the dangers of using contact lens cleaners improperly,
patients being aware of the dangers, and doctors prescribing cleaning solutions that are,
effective, and doesnt cause allergic reactions to patients. Doing these things will reduce or

Leandre 5
maybe prevent any emergency situations ever occurring. Itll prevent people from losing their
vision and harm to the eye.
The doctor should give the patient nearly perfect instructions on how to use the lens
cleaner properly and what happens if you dont. Not only should the doctor provide instructions,
the doctor needs to communicate the importance of using the prescribed contact lens solution,
and using it as directed. Patient education is of vital importance and must be reinforced at every
opportunity. Again, highlighting the benefits of compliance can demonstrate to the patient that
there is more to be gained from lens care compliance than simply minimizing the risk of
infection (Eiden). Also, labels on the lens cleaning solution and on the packaging should
have clear instructions on how to use the lens cleaner and warning labels on what could happen
if used improperly. The instruction on the packaging and bottle is just in case the patient forgets
the instructions. The patient also has to adhere to the instructions and follow them the proper
way, so the patient plays a role in all this.
Sometimes it isnt always the doctor or the companies fault. Sometimes its the patients
negligence and careless attitude that leads to emergency eye injuries. The Patient has to be aware
of the dangers of not following instructions and being irresponsible and also the consequences of
doing so. It isnt only the doctors instruction that could prevent these emergencies alone, its
also the patient following instructions and doing them the right way.
Prescribing an effective lense cleaner will help to prevent infections due to contact lenses
not being cleaned properly. An effective lens will remove protein, dirt, and other foreign
objects from the contact, keeping it clean and safe for use. Prescribing cleansers that wont cause
the patient to get an allergic reaction will also help to prevent emergency situations and eye
injuries. If all of these solutions are followed, less injuries and emergencies will occur.

Leandre 6
Because of an increase of burning eyes and emergency injuries, companies and doctors
should warn patients of the dangers of using contact lens cleaners improperly. This problem can
also be solved in many other ways, such as, patient awareness, better instruction of contact
cleaner use at point of sale, prescription of effective, easy to use solutions and prescribing
solutions that dont cause allergic reactions to the patient. The suggested solutions will help to
prevent less emergency situations, eye injuries, and promote better use for not only contact lens
cleaning solutions, but also contact lenses. Inaction will result in more eye injuries over the years
and will leave people ignorant to the ramifications of not using lens cleaning solutions properly.
information on what other materials could replace the harmful chemicals that cause these injuries
and irritation to the eye could also help prevent emergencies and injuries in the future. In this
instance, the community includes patients, doctors, and the companies that make the cleaning
solution. Patients adhering to instructions on how to properly use lens cleaning solutions, doctors
giving thorough instructions, and companies putting labels that carry a strong caution on dangers
of using the lens solution will all help to the better the situation

Leandre 7
Work Cited

"Bausch & Lomb Renu Contact Lens Solution Eye Infections." Contact Lens Solution Eye
Infection Lawsuit Claims. Web. 20 Feb. 2015.
<http://www.trgnetworking.com/SKM/side-effects/bausch-lomb-renu-moistureloc.html>.
White, Gina. "Caring for Soft Contact Lenses." All About Vision. Web. 2 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.allaboutvision.com/contacts/caresoftlens.htm#basic>.
Stuart, Annie. "Contact Lenses: When a Solution Is the Problem." Contact Lenses: When a
Solution Is the Problem. Web. 2 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.aao.org/publications/eyenet/201208/comprehensive.cfm>.
Sindt, Christine. "Contact Lens Solutions 101." Review of Cornea and Contact Lenses. Web. 2
Mar. 2015.
<http://reviewofcontactlenses.com/content/d/solutions_and_lens_care/c/44388/>.
Barry Eiden, S. "Does One Contact Lens Solution Fit All?" Review of Cornea and Contact
Lenses. Web. 18 May 2011. Web. 2 Mar. 2015
<http://www.reviewofcontactlenses.com/content/c/28321/>.
Stokes, Trevor. Eye burns linked to misuse of Clear Care contact lens cleaner -NBC News.
Web. 20 Feb.
2015.
<.http://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/eye-burns-linked-misuse-clear-carecontact-lens-cleaner-f815989>
Sindt, Christine. Are Solutions Actually the Problem? Review of Cornea and Contact Lenses.
15.Jan.2014. Web. 2 Mar. 2015.
<http://www.reviewofcontactlenses.com/content/c/46044/>

Leandre 8

"Ophthalmology Book." Ophthalmology. Web. 20 Feb. 2015.

http://www.fpnotebook.com/eye/index.htm

"ReNu MoistureLoc Side Effects May Lead To Fusarium Keratitis Lawsuits." News. Web. 20
Feb. 2015.
<http://www.yourlawyer.com/topics/overview/renu_contact_solution>.