Frequency, structure, main causes and outcomes of keratitis caused by wearing contact lenses

Purpose. To study the frequency, structure and outcomes of keratitis caused by wearing contact lenses. Material and methods. A continuous sample of all cases of the incidence of keratitis provoked by an error in wearing contact lenses in adult patients from 2017 to 2019 was carried out. All of them underwent inpatient treatment for this matter in the ophthalmological department of the City Clinical Hospital No. 10 of the Ministry of Health of the Khabarovsk Territory. The provoking factors, etiological structure, the frequency of restoration of visual functions and the outcomes of these keratitis were determined. Results. The total number of cases studied was 51 (52 eyes). Keratitis was provoked by wearing soft contact lenses (SCL) mainly in females (76.5%) aged 20– 30 years. Lenses were selected mainly for moderate myopia (44%). Bacterial etiology of keratitis was detected in 61% of cases, mixed – in 31% of cases, viral – in 8%. The main reason for the development of keratitis is violations in the mode of using SCL (sleep in lenses, prolonged use of SCL with an expired wearing period, violation of the rules for caring for lenses). Conclusion. In the structure of keratitis, provoked by wearing SCL, there were mainly bacterial keratitis (61%). The predominant factors contributing to the formation of keratitis were: sleeping in lenses (51%) and prolonged wearing of lenses exceeding their useful life (24%). The treatment made it possible to completely restore visual functions in 38% of patients. Key words: keratitis, soft contact lenses, myopic refraction.