CONTACT LENSES AND COVID-19
April 13, 2020
COVID-19 is the major news topic right now. With the abundance of information out there it’s easy to stumble upon advice that is misleading, or just plain wrong. Regarding contact lenses, the message we want to give you is that contact lens wear is safe . As always, it’s important to follow certain precautions while wearing contact lenses (thanks to Johnson and Johnson, makers of Acuvue brand contact lenses for producing the following fact sheet. More information can be found here.
- Contact Lens Wear is Safe . Despite myths and misinformation that have arisen in recent reports, contact lens wear remains a safe and highly effective form of vision correction for millions of people worldwide.
- Proper Hand Washing is Essential . When using contact lenses or spectacles, careful and thorough hand washing with soap and water followed by hand drying with unused paper towels is paramount. For contact lens wearers, this should occur before every insertion and removal.
- Disinfect Contact Lenses . Contact lens wearers should either dispose of their daily disposable lenses each evening, or regularly disinfect their monthly and two-week lenses according to manufacturer and eye care professional instructions. A helpful guide for patients can be downloaded from the clinical insight section of this issue of contact lens update.
- Disinfect Spectacles and Glasses . Some viruses such as COVID-19 can remain on hard surfaces for hours to days, which can be transferred to spectacles wearers’ fingers and faces. This especially holds true for presbyopes (people generally over the age of 40). Most presbyopes require reading glasses and they may be putting them on and off their face multiple times a day. This age group appears to be among the more vulnerable population for being more seriously affected by COVID-19, as compared with contact lens wearers, who are typically younger.
- Discontinue Lens Wear Only if Sick . Ceasing contact lens wear when sick is advised, consistent with guidance for other types of illness.
- Spectacles are Not Proven to Offer Protection . There is no scientific evidence that wearing spectacles or glasses provide protection against COVID-19 or other viral transmissions.
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