Parasites Bury in Woman's Eye After She Went Swimming in Contact Lenses: 'Most Pain I've Ever Experienced'
A rare amoeba caused Brooklyn McCasland to go blind in one eye — and she’s still struggling with the parasitic infection
Parasites burrowed into a Texas woman’s eye, causing her to go blind — and it’s because she went swimming in contact lenses.
Brooklyn McCasland, 23, visited Alabama with friends in August when she says she contracted the parasite acanthamoeba keratitis (AK), which the Cleveland Clinic explains is an amoeba that can damage your cornea and cause vision loss.
“This infection mimics other common infections so at the time I was put on steroids and a handful of other drops,” McCasland explained in a GoFundMe established to help her pay her considerable medical bills.
The delay in diagnosing acanthamoeba keratitis caused McCasland’s infection to worsen, she said.
“I was in the most pain I’ve ever experienced and eventually went fully blind in my right eye,” she said.
McCasland said she was seeing an eye doctor every two days, and was referred to different eye specialists as she sought an answer for the pain and vision loss.
Related: Florida Man Dies of Brain-Eating Amoeba After Rinsing Sinuses with Tap Water
When “I got the results back that I had AK,” McCasland said she was told “I could possibly go permanently blind or lose my eye if not starting treatment immediately.”
She adds that “because this infection is so rare, the drops that are used for treatment are only made in the UK. Luckily, the doctor’s office in Dallas had a couple of samples so I could start treatment as soon as possible.”
McCasland said she needs to put drops in her eyes every 30 minutes because “it is such a slow healing process.”
“I’m thankful that we know exactly what it is and I’m able to start the correct treatment,” she said. “If I would have known that from not swimming in my contacts I could’ve avoided all of this pain, I would have never done it.”
Acanthamoeba keratitis infections are rare, with an estijmated 1,500 infections in the U.S. annually — but contact lens wearers make up a whopping 90% of those cases. As the Cleveland Clinic explains, wearing contacts for too long, improperly storing or cleaning them, and wearing them while swimming or showering can increase your risk of contracting the parasite.
Also, "contact lens wear cause minor corneal abrasions, which is the key initial step for Acanthamoeba infection." the National Library of Medicine pointed out.
Related: Mom Is Almost Blinded by a Parasite from Swimming in Her Contact Lenses: 'It was So Horrific'
And for McCasland, her struggle with the infection is far from over. As she shared in an update on the GoFundMe, a recent visit to the doctor confirmed “it looked not completely worse but not better than last time.”
“There is a possibility I will need to get a cornea transplant once we get rid of the infection. This could take months but I’m thankful that we know exactly what it is,” McCasland said. “I hope my journey will help prevent anyone else from going through this.”
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