23-year-old American woman goes blind after swimming with contact lenses – Know everything about this shocking case

In a shocking incident, a woman has lost her sight after going swimming with her contact lenses. The 23-year-old woman from Texas, United States, reportedly has a rare parasitic infection.

The woman was visiting Alabama with her friends in August when she contracted the parasite acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) – an amoeba that can damage the cornea and cause vision loss.

“This infection mimics other common infections, so I was given steroids and a handful of other drops at the time,” she explained on a GoFundMe page created to help her pay her medical bills.

She also said the delay in diagnosing the rare infection caused it to worsen. “I was in the most pain I have ever experienced and ended up completely blind in my right eye,” she said, as quoted by the media.

The 23-year-old said she visited an ophthalmologist every two days and was referred to several eye specialists as she sought answers for the pain and vision loss. When she got her results back, it was confirmed that she had the rare infection. She could reportedly become permanently blind or lose her eye if she did not start treatment immediately.

“Because this infection is so rare, the drops used for treatment are only made in Britain. Luckily, the doctor’s office in Dallas had some samples so I could start treatment as soon as possible,” she said.

She has to put drops in her eyes every 30 minutes because “the healing process is so slow.” “I’m grateful that we know exactly what it is and that I can start the right treatment,” she said. “If I had known I could have avoided all this pain by not swimming in my lenses, I never would have done it.”

What is acanthamoeba keratitis (AK)?

Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) is a rare but often misdiagnosed corneal infection, a 2023 study by the journal StatPearls found. According to the study, the disease mainly affects contact lens wearers and is sometimes the result of trauma to the cornea in non-contact lens wearers.

This infection is caused by the genus Acanthamoeba, a globally widespread unicellular protozoan parasite. “Over the past two decades there has been a continued increase in the number of contact lens users, coupled with inadequate hygienic practices, increased risk factors and improper handling methods, which have led to an increased risk of microbial keratitis, especially bacterial keratitis and AK, ” study found.

What are the symptoms?

According to Cleveland Clinic, symptoms include:

• Eye pain (sometimes severe).
• Feeling like something is stuck in your eye (foreign body sensation), but washing your eyes doesn’t help and you don’t see anything stuck there.
• Watery eye (epiphora).
• Light sensitivity (photophobia).
• Redness or irritation of the eyes.
• Corneas that look cloudy or dirty or have a ring-shaped area on their surface.
• Blurred or clouded vision (usually happens in severe or advanced cases).

What causes acanthamoeba keratitis?

The most common ways for acanthamoeba that can infect your eyes include:

• Contact lenses.
• Contaminated water.
• Eye injuries.

How is acanthamoeba keratitis treated?

The infection is usually treated with medications and surgery. The approach depends on the seriousness of the case.

How to prevent acanthamoeba keratitis?

According to Cleveland Clinic, some of the steps you can take include:

• Wear contact lenses as prescribed
• Store your contacts properly
• Clean your contacts and the case you keep them in
• If you develop an eye infection, throw away contact lenses and replace the case
• Be careful not to get water directly into your eyes
• Take precautions if you are at higher risk for AK infection
• Use eye protection to prevent injuries