Informed consent and medical devices: the case of the contact lens

Contact Lens Use Patterns, Behavior and Knowledge Among University Students in Thailand

Purpose

Little is known about contact lens (CL) use in young generation. This study aimed to investigate the patterns, behavior and knowledge of CL wear and care in Thai university students.

Methods

A cross-sectional study using online questionnaires was conducted during July 2019 to February 2020 in two Rajabhat universities, Bangkok, Thailand. Participant characteristics, CL information, knowledge and behaviors were collected. Factors associated with poor behaviors and CL-related corneal ulcers were analyzed using logistic regression.

Results

Of 493 students participating in the survey, 336 students (66.78%) were current CL users and completed the questionnaires. Mean age was 19.2 ± 1.4 years with female predominance (80.36%). All students wore soft CL with a major replacement schedule of monthly disposable (90.18%). Good CL wear and care behaviors were found in 190 students (56.55%). The most common poor CL behavior and poor CL knowledge were CL overuse (44.64%) and sleeping with lenses (31.85%), respectively. There were no correlations between behaviors and knowledge (r = 0.03). Purchasing lens from internet, wearing experience over one year, and long wear duration (> 12 hours) were significantly associated with poor CL behavior. Male gender and swimming with lens were significantly associated with history of corneal ulcers.

Conclusion

The study pointed out a low compliance of CL wear and care in Thai university students. Good CL practices, awareness of CL-related complications and purchasing place should be carefully informed and regularly stressed to minimize preventable visual damage in young population.

A review of cosmetic contact lens infections

This paper provides a comprehensive review of the existing literature surrounding cosmetic contact lens infections. In this paper, lens-related, dispensing-related and patient-related factors are examined in detail.

Contact Lens Care among Teenage Students in Italy: A Cross-Sectional Study

AIM

To assess the attitude and practice of contact lens (CL) wearers among teenage school students and to evaluate how much the teenagers adhere to the CL care procedures according to the proper care of CL guidelines.

METHODS

A cross-sectional descriptive study of Italian teenagers from high schools in Rome who wear CL. We inquired about the different aspects of CL care through a questionnaire.

RESULTS

We investigated 3,106 students from high schools in Rome (2% of all Roman high school students), 293 of whom wore CL (9%); 151 (52%) of participants responded, 42 (27.8%) male and 109 (72.8%) female. The mean age was 16.4 ± 1.6 years. 79.5% of students were daily users. 45.7% wore CL more than nine hours/day. 87.4% wore soft CL. 33.1% wore disposable CL; 7.9% weekly CL, 55% monthly CL. Thirty-four percent wore disposable lenses twice or more. 14.5% of students did not wash their hands before handling CL and 52.3% wore CL after it had fallen in the sink. 39.7% rubbed and cleaned CL before storing it. 10% used expired lens care solutions. Only 31.1% changed CL cases every three months. 38.4% wore CL in a swimming pool. 61.6% were having problems: redness (13.9%), itching (7.9%), and foreign body sensation (29.1%).

CONCLUSION

Many students don't properly care for their CL. Education regarding proper care and management of CL among users is advised in view of frequency of symptoms and complications reported.

A comparative study of visual function of young myopic adults wearing contact lenses vs. spectacles

PURPOSE

To evaluate the impact of contact lenses wear vs. spectacles wear on visual function of young adults with mild to moderate myopia.

METHODS

57 students (27 male and 30 female) with a mean age of 23 years old participated in the study. Their mean best corrected visual acuity was 10/10 binocularly, all suffered from mild to moderate myopia (-3.75 sph/SD 1.25 sph) and they were both contact lenses and spectacles wearers. The VF-14 questionnaire was administered to assess the contact lenses wear vs. spectacles wear impact score on general daily living among the young individuals. It was used translated in Greek after following the 'translation-back translation' procedure.

RESULTS

The mean VF-14 score among spectacles and contact lenses wearers was 100 and 86.78 (SD 4.08) respectively. Although there was a significant difference between the two groups (p<0.05), both scores were related to a satisfactory functional vision for daily living. The contact lenses wearers were facing difficulty especially while driving at night, seeing steps, as well as doing fine handwork (i.e. sewing, knitting or carpentry).

CONCLUSIONS

The use of both spectacles and contact lenses provides satisfactory visual functioning for daily activities in young individuals suffering from mild to moderate myopia. However, there is a spectacles' wear superiority in personal satisfaction when compared to contact lenses.

Pattern of use of contact lens among college students: a cross-sectional study in coastal Karnataka

The use of contact lens (CL) for the correction of refractive errors, cosmetic use and their usage as a therapeutic modality for corneal pathologies has increased tremendously over the years. The present study was conducted with the aim to find a pattern of CL use amongst college students with a focus on the rationale for CL use and problems related to their use. This study includes 371 college students who were current users of CL at the time of the study. Results showed that 96.8% of the CL users use the ‘daily wear type’ of CL. Most quoted reasons of usage were comfort and convenience (61.2%) with cosmetic benefit (42.9%) as the next most common reply. Common complaints were that of general discomfort (foreign body sensation), dry eyes and watering eyes. Educated use of CLs amongst its users is advised in view of the symptoms and associated complications that may occur.

Bilateral Acanthamoeba keratitis in an experienced two-weekly disposable contact lens wearer

PURPOSE

To present a case of bilateral Acanthamoeba keratitis in a patient who stored both contact lenses in the same storage case.

METHODS

The case report of a 44-year-old female contact lens wearer who developed bilateral culture-positive Acanthamoeba keratitis. Although an experienced contact lens user for many years, she admitted to occasionally rinsing her dual contact lens case in tap water and leaving it to air dry. She was successfully treated with intensive topical polyhexamethyl biguanide and propamide isethionate in conjunction with a mydriatic agent, topical ofloxacin, and oral flurbiprofen.

RESULTS

The Acanthamoeba keratitis resolved without sequelae. After 6 months, the patient had a visual acuity of 20/20 in each eye.

CONCLUSIONS

Although bilateral Acanthamoeba keratitis is rare, it is essential that the patient is properly educated in contact lens hygiene and disinfection. Regular contact lens follow-up of patients is essential, and lens storage and disinfection techniques must be reviewed with the patient. The use of single-use contact lens storage cases may be advantageous in reducing the incidence of bilateral disease after case contamination.