As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues, more is learned about how the virus affects the body. Recently, researchers in China noted that COVID-19 may be present in eye secretions, causing symptoms such as pink eye. For contact lens wearers, who frequently touch their eyes, this finding is cause for concern. Sumayya Ahmad, MD, Assistant Professor, Ophthalmology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, explains what contact lens wearers need to know about COVID-19.
Can you contract COVID-19 when putting in your contact lens?
There is no evidence showing that using contact lenses can cause people to get infected with COVID-19. What we know is that the virus tends to live in the respiratory tract, and even people with active disease do not always have eye symptoms. The largest study to-date from Wuhan, China showed live virus in a swab of the conjunctiva in 2.5 percent (3 out of 121) of known, symptomatic COVID-19 patients, which is very low.
Are people who wear contact lenses at higher risk of contracting the virus?
People who wear contact lenses tend to touch their face more than people who wear glasses. We know that the risk of viral transmission is higher when touching your face, and that includes touching the eye. Although the membranes of the eye surface—the cornea and conjunctiva—are very strong, if there are viral particles on your hand and you touch your eye, you could become infected with the virus. However, for an isolated eye exposure to cause a full-blown respiratory tract infection remains to be seen, and would be a very difficult question to study.
Should people who wear contact lenses take any special precautions?
At this time, the American Academy of Ophthalmology recommends that if you do need to wear contacts, that you be particularly cautious about practicing good hygiene. This means you should wash your hands for 20 seconds before placing contacts, take them out each night—do not shower or sleep in them—and make sure your contacts case and solution are clean. You should also avoid touching your eyes while wearing them. If you are caring for someone with known COVID-19, it may be advisable to wear glasses because of the risk of transmission.