[*StarDust*]

Are your eyes ageing unnaturally?



She started experiencing dryness and discomfort in her eyes a few months back.

A contact lens user, Mrs Soo Chua, who is in her 40s, had the habit of sleeping with her contact lenses and would wake up with a blurry vision if she did so.

"I don't deliberately wear them to sleep but often when I'm too tired, I tend to fall asleep without removing my lenses," said the housewife.

She also had the habit of wearing her contact lenses for up to 16 hours at a stretch.

Worried about her eyes, Mrs Chua consulted her optomerist immediately and was diagnosed with premature corneal ageing, a condition where the natural ageing process of her eyes was accelerated.

"Premature corneal ageing is triggered off by stress to the cornea, such as corneal surgery, poor fitting contact lenses and inadequate oxygen reaching the cornea," said Dr Stan Isaacs, President of The Singapore Contact Lens Society and Clinical Director of I & Vision.

Those who have been wearing contact lenses - especially low oxygen lenses - are more prone to developing the condition.

Fortunately, it does not lead to blindness or other serious complications, he said.

However, it does not mean that the condition should be ignored.

"It is only moderately reversible and results in slowing down corneal healing in the event of surgery and in severe cases, causes intolerance to lens wear.

"For active people, this can significantly reduce their quality of life," said Dr Isaacs.

There are no definitive symptoms of premature corneal ageing, he pointed out. While some patients may experience symptoms like red or dry eyes, others may not.

"In an advanced condition, it may manifest itself as intolerance to using contact lenses," he said, adding that people should not wait until symptoms appear before consulting a qualified eyecare professional.

Dr Isaacs recommends that eye checks and corneal health assessments should be carried out every six months.

For contact lens users affected by the condition, there is hope yet.

"If premature corneal ageing is a direct result of inadequate oxygen reaching the cornea, the best course of action would be to prescribe silicone hydrogel contact lenses," said Dr Isaacs.

Such contact lenses allow five times more oxygen into the cornea compared to traditional soft contact lenses.

For Mrs Soo, the switch to high oxygen permeable lenses helped her condition greatly.

"I have not experienced dryness or blurred vision after making the switch," she said.

"Our eyes are very important and we should take proper care of our eyes from young.

"I strongly encourage everyone to visit the optometrist for regular check-ups and not wait till problems occur before consulting them."

Source: http://health.asiaone.com/Health/New...15-173872.html

[PinkLady]

how can she wear contacts to slp, no matter how tired also must take out meh