Prevent Blindness has declared October as Contact Lens Safety Month to provide educational resources to consumers and encourage healthy habits for contact lens use. 

According to Prevent Blindness, many consumers may not be aware that all contact lenses, even lenses that are “decorative,” “cosmetic,” and non–vision correcting, are regulated medical devices that require a prescription and proper fitting by a practitioner. As Halloween approaches, Prevent Blindness said, some revelers may want to enhance their costumes with these types of contact lenses. Prevent Blindness warns that only contacts purchased through a valid prescription from a qualified eye health professional are safe to wear.

Prevent Blindness offers a variety of free resources to help educate the public on how to use contact lenses safely and effectively, including the Prevent Blindness Focus on Eye Health Expert Series episode, “Contact Lens Safety,” featuring Dr. Thomas L. Steinemann, professor of ophthalmology at Case Western Reserve University.

Additional Prevent Blindness Contact Lens Safety resources include websites, factsheets, and social media graphics.  

Prevent Blindness noted that users should remove contact lenses before any activities with water, such as showering, bathing, swimming, or hot tub use, due to an increased risk for Acanthamoeba keratitis, a serious eye infection that affects the cornea. If left untreated, AK can lead to severe vision loss, and in severe cases, blindness or loss of an eye. Contact lenses and contact lens solution that have expired should be replaced. Users should always wash their hands with soap and water before handling contact lenses and never wear someone else’s lenses, Prevent Blindness cautioned.

As with any vision and eye health emergency, Prevent Blindness urges contact lens wearers to contact their eyecare practitioner immediately if they experience unexplained eye discomfort or pain, redness of the eye, watering eyes, or vision changes. Early diagnosis and treatment can help to avoid sight-threatening infections, the organization said.