bea@alice.UUCP (Bea Chambers) (02/20/85)
I had problems with contact solutions preserved with thimerosal also. All problems disappeared when I started making my own saline with salt tablets and distilled water. It's a lot more trouble but... I still use a cleaner with thimerosal but I rinse with a lot of saline. Hope this helps somebody.
ksbszabo@wateng.UUCP (Kevin Szabo) (02/21/85)
I passed a copy of the original article to my wife who had the following response: Apparently a reaction to thimersosal in saline solutions is not uncommon. In Canada Bausch&Lomb makes a sensitive eyes saline solution. This solution contains no thimersosal. You should ask your optometrist (or opthamologist) about case studies of reactions to thimserosal and his opinion about your contacts and allergies. Vicki Szabo -- Kevin Szabo watmath!wateng!ksbszabo (U of Waterloo VLSI Group, Waterloo Ont.)
beth@gymble.UUCP (Beth Katz) (02/21/85)
I have been wearing soft contacts for seven years and extended wear lenses
for the last eight months. I had no problems with the soft lenses other
than replacing them every 13 months or so. My first set of extended lenses
was okay for about 5 months, but then crud starting building up on them
even though I cleaned and soaked them once a week. My eyelids were allergic
to the crud (crud occurs when the secretions from your eyes stick to the
lenses and harden). My eye doctor (optometrist at a store but he seemed as
competent as any ophthamologist I've ever seen and he's been wearing the
extended wear lenses for a couple of years) said that about 10% of the people
wearing these lenses have this problem. I replaced the lenses and haven't
had any problems in the last three weeks EXCEPT I am allergic to something
in my boyfriend's apartment. Maybe it's dust or something in the carpet,
but the first place I notice it is in my eyes. Taking half a Dimetane every
six hours or so cleared up my problem. At first I thought it was the contacts
again, but the Dimetane (an over-the-counter antihistimine) cleared up the
problem and I don't have a problem when I am home.
SO, from my experience, I would suggest avoiding thimersol to see if that
clears things up (it didn't for me), cleaning your lenses frequently
especially if there is a lot of dust or pollen in the air, being ready for
an allergic attack, and seeing your eye care professional if you have any
problems. I was fortunate to have a year of followup visits included in
my contact deal. I've invested $150 in contacts in the past eight months,
but I feel as though I have received excellent care.
Beth Katz
{seismo,allegra,rlgvax}!umcp-cs!bethmroddy@enmasse.UUCP (Mark Roddy) (02/23/85)
> > Apparently a reaction to thimersosal in saline > solutions is not uncommon. In Canada Bausch&Lomb > makes a sensitive eyes saline solution. This solution > contains no thimersosal. It's sold here, and it contains thermisol. CooperVision sells a line of thermisol-free solutions, including lubricants, saline, and cleanser. Mark Roddy