Contact Lens Addicts Anonymous

Its been a while since I've written a blog post. So long, in fact, that blogger.com emailed to tell me that my site had developed virtual cobwebs... kidding!

Well, I'm back. And its all thanks to a crazy day at the office. This past Sunday (yes, I work Sundays... and yes, I am a little bit crazy... thank you for asking), I felt like I was working in some sort of contact lens emergency clinic. It was like Clearly Contacts was having a sale on eye infections or something! I'm sure the Liberal government backed them on it and I must have missed Trevor's ads on TV...

Moving on...

A while back, I wrote a blog titled Contact Lens Addicts, which explained how some patients become so dependent on their contact lenses that they put themselves at risk of suffering many different problems, some of which could lead to permanent vision loss. Well, Sunday was like a Contact Lens Addicts Anonymous meeting at Metropolis Eye Care.

The CL-AA meeting started with a pleasant, 50-something woman whose contact lens had folded up and tucked itself so far behind her upper eyelid that I almost wished I had a third hand to help flip her eyelid, and/or hold a q-tip, and/or grab the forceps.

Now, lets just take a quick second to answer the question that is likely swirling around in some of your minds... No, the contact lens cannot go so far back that it ends up behind the eyeball. Luckily, the conjunctiva (the thin skin that covers the eye ball) actually folds over itself and covers the inside of the eyelids as well. Effectively creating a natural contact lens catching contraption (and you thought conjunctiva was hard to say).

Next up was a very friendly lady in her mid-thirties who is actually quite good at taking care of her contact lenses. She doesn't over wear them, she replaces them on schedule, and she's good at cleaning them every night (sounds too good to be true, but I believed her). However, despite all of the regular care and maintenance, she managed to fall asleep in her lenses.

Now, we all know that one night stands are a bad idea (right?). Well, sleeping with your contacts is a lot like a one night stand...  There's usually booze involved, it seems like a good idea at the time, you wake up in the morning with something feeling itchy and/or irritated (we're talking about eyes folks!), and then you're doing the walk of shame... into my exam room!

Even for someone who takes care of her contacts, one night with her lenses was enough to cause a small corneal ulcer, secondary to a bacterial infection. Yes, an ulcer. Yes, its as unpleasant as it sounds.

Last, and certainly not least, is the poor little girl who forced me out of blog-writing retirement to tell you her unfortunate story. A 16 year old kid who has been wearing Ortho-K lenses. I won't go into detail, but basically these are lenses you only wear at night while sleeping. Hopefully the "only wear at night while sleeping" part raised a red flag or two for most of you. To make matters worse, she was fit for and bought the lenses overseas, so I have no idea what she's been wearing. Not all that different than buying contacts online without being fit for them by a professional, might I add. But I digress...

The poor kid was in so much pain, she could not open her eye if her life depended on it. When I finally got a look, this is what I saw...

A very red and upset eye with a large, central corneal ulcer. Long story-short, she is and will be in need of a lot of eye drops (as much as every 30-60 minutes all day AND night) and maybe even some oral medications. The worst part of it is that when the infection is finally controlled, this ulcer will likely leave a large scar right in the center of her vision thus causing a permanent decrease in vision in that eye.

These were just three of the multiple cases I dealt with during the CL-AA meeting on Sunday.

Its extremely important to understand the consequences of taking our vision for granted. Online sales and deregulation have made it easy to overlook the fact that contact lenses are actually medical devices. They are pieces of plastic that we put on our eye ball to help improve our vision. We should not lose sight of that (pun intended).

I am genuinely concerned and upset about this young girl and so many other patients who suffer from serious issues due to improper contact lens wear and poor ocular hygiene. So, if you or your kids wear contacts, be sure to have the lenses fit by a professional and never hesitate to come in and have your eyes checked if you think something is wrong. As with most things, if we catch it early, its much easier to treat.

Please feel free to comment here and message me via Facebook or email if you have any questions or comments.


Note: The pictures are not of my patients, but are accurate representations of their respective issues.

Vodka Eyeballing: Let's Stop Talking About It

Google Search: vodka eyeball. 1,060,000 results (0.52 seconds). Wow, that is an absurd number of results for a practice that doesn't even exist (as long as you don't count the 5 people in world who do not, unlike the rest of us, suffer the burden of common sense and have actually attempted it).

What is it? Apparently, it is a "recent trend" that is popular with college students as a way to get drunk faster. The process is simple. Pour the vodka onto your eyeball.

Have you seen these people? It got the feeling they were auditioning for a spot in the next Jackass movie. Hey, why don't you guys try snorting wasabi or go bull fighting blindfolded? That might get you the gig.

Anyway, for almost a year now, stories of this nonsensical behaviour have been spiraling out of control. Although it has been covered by every possible news and media outlet multiple times, no one can put a finger on where it began and who is actually doing it (other than the aforementioned 5 people, lets call them the Fabulous Five!). This fiasco was created purely by the media and perpetuated by the upset parents who have been watching the reports and then calling their kids who are probably too busy taking regular vodka shots to even understand what Mommy and Daddy and talking about.

I know what you're going to say. "Harbir, you're just adding to it and fueling the fire by writing this blog!". Erroneous! Erroneous, I say! The sole intention of this blog is to stop people from talking about this fictitious form of alcohol consumption and concentrate on more meaningful and consequential topics of discussion such as How Trevor Linden Sold Out.

Now, to answer the questions that are likely circling your minds.

#1) Does it work? No.

Imagine putting an eye drop into your eye. Now put a second drop right after. And now a third. What happens? It spills over. Each individual drop from an eye drop bottle is approximately 0.05ml. And your eye can't handle more than a few drops.

1 ounce of fluid (vodka, in this case) = 30 ml. So, less than 0.1% of the alcohol in an eyeball shot will stay in your eye. Furthermore, an even smaller amount will actually be absorbed.

#2) Does it hurt? Since I am not one of the Fabulous Five, my answer is purely presumptive. Yes.

#3) Is it dangerous? Yes.

Alcohol can cause breakdown of the epithelium (outer covering) of the cornea and conjunctiva thus leaving the ocular surface susceptible to insults such as corneal abrasions, keratitis, conjuctivitis, and infections.

Vodka Eyballing. Lets Stop Talking About It.

"If you think metaphorical beer goggles are bad, imagine what literal vodka goggles will make you do!" -Stephen Colbert

 

Visine

Picture this: You're eyes are a little irritated, possibly even a little red. You're not sure why this is happening, but you figure an eye drop could help. You walk into the eye drops section in the pharmacy and you're bombarded by about 131,239 different types of eye drops that tell you they do all sorts of wonderful things. So you pick the one with the name you've heard and claims to do what you want... Visine.

Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. But you give it a try nonetheless.

So, is Visine bad for your eyes and why?

1) The active ingredient in the original Visine is Tetrahydrozaline Hydrochloride. It works by constricting blood vessels. Over time, the blood vessels will stop responding to it and even have a rebound effect, where they get more dilated and red than before.

2) The preservative used in all Visine drops is Benzalkonium Cholride (aka BAK). It has been shown to be one of the most likely to cause ocular toxicity and irritation. Most pharmaceutical companies don't BAK in their medicated eye drops for this reason.

If you insist on using Visine for dry eyes, consider using the preservative-free formula.

FAQ:
Q: Can I use Visine to get rid of Pink Eye?

A: No. Pink eye is a viral infection of the eye and should be looked at by your doctor. He or she can then determine which drops (if any) are needed. Learn more about Pink Eye Here.

Q: What other drops should I use?

A: There are many options for dry eyes, allergies, contact lenses, and infections. Its best to ask your friendly neighborhood eye doctor what is best for your eyes.

Q: Is it true that a few drops of Visine in someone's drink can give them an upset stomach (like in Wedding Crashers)?

A: A few drops probably wouldn't do much. However, a lot would likely make a person very sick. Aside from vomit and/or diarrhea, it could affect a person's vision, heart rate, and body temperature. So, I would not recommend trying it :)