Contact lenses under water

[Simmons99]

my doctor told me that soft contacts want to stick to the wetter surface - which is why trying to put them in with wet hands is hard. I was told not to even wear them in the pool - let alone open my eyes underwater. I have never tried it because it would cost me about $400 to replace one.

[medvampire]

I would not recommend wearing contact lenses while in the pool and would strongly caution against opening your eyes while swimming. Most soft lens are permutable causing materials in the pool to seep into the lens. The resulting mix of chemicals may damage the cornea. I would also be worried about contamination of the lens by microbes possible causing conjunctivitis or corneal infection. I have seen a case of Pseudomonas conjunctivitis from contaminated contact lens but I don’t remember the source.
Steve

[CarlD]

Goggles are cheap. Why risk it?