research warns against sleeping in contact lenses
sleeping in contact lenses can lead to an increased risk of severe eye infection, new research suggests. but new generation contact lenses, the investigation reveals, perform better in this regard than their predecessors.
the university of manchester study found that wearers who failed to remove their lenses before bedtime had an increased risk of developing keratitis than those who routinely took out their lenses before going to sleep. the research also found that the type of contact lens worn had a significant effect on a person's chances of developing a severe infection.
the findings, based on a year-long study of patients attending the royal manchester eye hospital, showed that people who slept in hydrogel lenses were five times more likely to develop keratitis than those sleeping in silicone hydrogel lenses. no difference between the type of lens worn and the risk of infection was found for normal daily wear.
the research, published in the british journal of ophthalmology tomorrow (tuesday, march 22), was led by dr philip morgan, an optometrist in the university's faculty of life sciences.