Study: Improper contact lens care is likely causing an uptick in eye infections

Study: Improper contact lens care is likely causing an uptick in eye infections
(Image credit: iStock)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a warning for all contact lens wearers: Take proper care of your lenses if you want to avoid getting an infection that can lead to blindness.

On Thursday, the CDC published a study in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report that said every year, doctors and emergency rooms see close to 1 million cases of cornea infections. The cornea is the clear covering of the eye, and while most infections can be cleared up with antibiotics, there is a likelihood of permanent eye damage or blindness.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.