Are there any special considerations regarding soft contact lenses?
Yes. Dr. Soni, Associate professor of Optometry at Indiana University has participated in a study which showed that 100% of soft contact lenses used in pool swimming were contaminated, when cultured. Normally, soft contact lenses are made up of a certain percentage of water. They absorb this water from your tears, and the amount of water they absorb is at least partially dependent on the salt content of your tears. When you swim with contact lenses, and you open your eyes, the lens readjust to the water content of the liquid you are swimming in. This causes them to stick to your corneas. It is claimed that it takes 1/2 hour after swimming for the lenses to equilibriate to tears, and that removal of the lenses before they equilibriate can damage the cornea, creating a “clear passage into the cornea for the bacteria from the contaminated lenses, which will cause infection.” Even practitioners who strongly believe in swimming with contact lenses feel that disclaimers should be given when
