FDA has cautioned the public that if not correctly fitted by an optometrist, zombie, vampire and other fancy contact lenses can lead to serious eye complications and even blindness.
Creepy zombie or vampire contact lenses that make a costume look frightfully realistic are just some of the well-known but dangerous Halloween trend nowadays. A teen from Michigan have to learn it the hard way as these accessories can create serious health hazards.
According to the Detroit Free Press reports, Leah Carpenter, seventeen-years-of-age was left partially blinded in her right eye after a zombie contact lens has reportedly impaired her cornea. Carpenter and some friends purchased the "WickedEyez" lenses a couple of weeks ago from a vendor at a weekend market in Mount Clemens, Michigan.
Leah's mother, Dawn Carpenter stated that that after wearing them for several hours at a school event, she had problems taking them out and her eyesight began to concern her. The morning after, her right eye was already inflamed shut.
Leah Carpenter is now halfway blinded in her right eye.
This is one case that public health authorities have frequently tried to advise about. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration -- which administers the safety of medical equipment including contact lenses -- featured a similar scenario from 2010 in which a young woman by the name of Laura Butler bought a $30 fancy lens to turn her brown eyes into blue, ending up with a $2,000 medical bills and almost lost an eye.
According to the FDA's advice, places that endorse contact lenses as cosmetics or auction them without any authorized instruction are considered as law offenders. It added that lenses should only be purchased from an optometrist since they aren't just a size that fits for all. A poor fit can lead to fatal eye damage such as scratches on the cornea as Leah Carpenter had experienced it.
The Detroit Free Press released its reports that in the beginning, Leah Carpenter could only identify shadows out of her right eye, but eventually, she has begun to recover some of her eyesight. Her mother said that Leah may require an eye operation and they don't know yet if her eyesight will ever fully get back.
