Coronavirus & Contact Lenses Safety

Eye health is more crucial than ever in the fight against contracting Coronavirus. The virus originated from Wuhan, China in December 2019 and has since become a global pandemic. While many people infected report only experiencing mild symptoms that echo those of the common cold, severe cases can be life threatening.

For those who rely on contact lenses, even more care must be applied when placing the lens on your eye. There is a heightened risk of your hands potentially passing on the virus to the eye via your lens.

In this post, we explore ways to improve your eye health habits, and reduce the chances of contracting the virus:

Good Habits

• Wash your hands rigorously before touching and applying contact lenses. Soap and water, or a alcohol based hand sanitiser that has at least 60% alcohol would be required to do this effectively. This remains the most powerful advice from government officials.
• Only wear the contact lenses for the recommended time period, and replace lenses at appropriate time intervals
• Cover your mouth and nose when you sneeze or cough, throw any used tissues away, and wash your hands thoroughly after doing so.
• Clean and disinfect surfaces at your home or office on a regular basis.
• Ensure you have an adequate supply of any prescribed eye medicines.

Bad Habits

• Avoid touching your nose, eyes and mouth without washing your hands first. Incredibly, the average person touches some part of their face between 3,000 to 5,000 times a day so it is important to be self-aware.
• Do not re-use single-use disposable contact lenses, or lenses that appear not to fit properly. In fact it may be useful to wear glasses instead of contact lenses, if you feel unwell e.g. if you have cold or flu-like symptoms. Do clean the glasses thoroughly and regularly, if you do this.
• In the event of eye itchiness, try hard to avoid rubbing your eyes, it can sometime make them feel more itchy, try using cool compresses or ocular lubricants instead.

Optegra & Your Safety

For those looking for elective vision correction treatments like laser eye surgery, or lens replacement – it is more important than ever to have treatment in a dedicated eye hospital. At Optegra, our patients are treated within state of the art, five star eye hospitals that make patient safety and hygiene a priority. Take a look at our immaculate eye hospitals.

Practicing good contact lens and eye health are more important than ever. In the end, there is nothing quite like having unaided, crystal clear vision. To learn more about how Optegra can help you lose your glasses or contact lenses, download a free information pack. We can assess your suitability for laser eye surgery on the phone, without you having to leave your home.