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 In recent years, illegally-purchased colored contacts have flooded
the retail market during Halloween and are most often found at
malls, beauty supply stores and via online websites. These lenses
are often made overseas in non-FDA approved facilities with tinting
materials that may be toxic to the eye. Without a proper examination
and fitting, colored contacts can cause damage to the eye, including
blindness.
“The use of decorative contacts to alter the appearance or color of
the eyes has been a growing trend over the past several years,” said
Bryan Schneider, IDFPR Secretary. “Because children and adults alike
view colored contacts as a fashion or costume accessory, they
neglect to realize that these lenses are classified as medical
devices that pose the same potential safety and health issues as
corrective lenses. As regulators, it is important that we alert
consumers to the unnecessary dangers of infection from
over-the-counter colored contacts made from potentially unsafe
materials.”
IDFPR licenses an estimated 2,300 optometrists and hundreds of
ophthalmologists in Illinois. Many have reported seeing patients who
have suffered from infections or corneal scratches as a result of
contact lens problems. Because contact lenses sit directly on the
cornea and could potentially limit the amount of oxygen reaching the
eye, all contact lenses pose some risk to wearers. By requiring
lenses to be fitted and sold by professionals, that risk is limited
and managed.
In addition to scratches from ill fitting lenses, bacteria build
within the eye very rapidly and can cause infections. Some types of
bacteria can cause permanent scarring within twenty hours of the
outbreak, if left untreated. While the infection may look like
pinkeye, an easily treated eye infection, contact lenses can cause
eye ulcers which must be treated with strong antibiotic medicine. If
left untreated, ulcers can cause partial or total irreversible
blindness.
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“Last year, a 20 year old patient presented with complaints of significant pain,
discharge, light sensitivity and decreased vision,” said Dr. Jennifer S. Harthan,
Chief of the Cornea Center at Illinois College of Optometry. “Her symptoms began
after sleeping in colored contact lenses that she purchased from a beauty supply
store. She later admitted that she did not know how to clean her lenses and that
she was unaware that she could not sleep in her contact lenses. The patient
ended up having a severe pseudomonas corneal ulcer. She now has permanent vision
loss.”
Because the health risk is serious and most of the customers seeking cosmetic
contact lenses are teens and young adults, IDFPR is partnering with the Illinois
State Board of Education and the Department of Public Health to alert teachers,
administrators and health care professionals in every school district and county
in the state about the serious health and vision problems facing young people
and warning signs to look for in their students and patients.
Sales of contact lenses to consumers without a valid prescription are considered
the unlicensed practice of optometry and subject to cease and desist orders and
civil fines of up to $10,000. Illinois residents are encouraged to notify state
officials if they see lenses for sale at retail outlets that do not require a
prescription from a licensed eye-care professional. Consumers can file
complaints at www.idfpr.com or by calling our consumer hotline number at
1-888-4REGUL8 (1-888-473-4858).
[Terry Horstman, Illinois Department
of Financial and Professional Regulation]
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