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An amateur footballer remained partially blind because a parasite sank into his right eye after he fell asleep with contact lenses.
Nick Humphreys, 29, of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, did not know that it was dangerous to wear contact lenses in the shower and would do it regularly.
In January 2018, he noticed a painful scratch that he was mastering with eye drops while opticians were testing for an infection.
The results are positive for Acanthamoeba keratitis, an infection caused by a small organism present in the water and capable of entering the eyes by a small cut, often caused by contact lenses.
In March 2018, Humphreys, a local press reporter and sports player, suddenly lost his sight in the car and has not recovered since.
The 18-month ordeal had a huge impact on Mr. Humphreys' mental health, which struggled to accept the limits of his damaged eye, which required almost complete elimination.
He underwent two operations to the eye, one of which to eliminate the infection, and now awaits a corneal transplant.
Nick Humphreys, 29, was left partially blind because a parasite started living in his right eye after taking a shower with contact lenses
Mr. Humphreys, of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, had started using contact lenses to improve his appearance and therefore did not need to wear glasses to play football. On the picture before
Mr. Humphreys did not know that it was dangerous to wear contact lenses in the shower and would do it regularly. In the photo now wears glasses
Mr. Humphreys said, "I had contacts because I did not like looking in glasses and it almost cost me the right eye.
"If I had known how dangerous it was to wear shower contacts, I would never have had them.
"After catching the infection, I went to the gym every other day and to football three times a week, I stayed at home for six months and I lost the urge to live. "
According to charities, the AK is becoming a threat to the sight. It is more common in people who wear contact lenses.
Poor contact lens hygiene, the use of tap water to clean or store contact lenses, or contamination of lenses with tap water, pool or spa increase the risk of infection.
Mr. Humphreys had been wearing short eyeglasses since the age of four and, wanting to improve his appearance and sight in the sport in 2013, Mr. Humphreys opted for the monthly lenses, priced at about £ 25.
He said: "At the age of about twenty-five, I really started to get into exercise and, at the time, I thought my glasses were a huge obstacle.
"When I finally overcame my fear of putting in contacts, I thought that they were the best thing that was."
Mr. Humphrey would use his contacts up to five days a week, wearing glasses on other days.
He said, "One ordinary morning, I got up, I put my lenses on and went to the gym before work, then I jumped in the shower before going to the office.
& # 39; I did not think about it at the time. I have never been told not to wear contact lenses in the shower. There is no warning on the packaging and my opticians have never mentioned any risk.
Mr. Humphreys woke up one morning in January 2018 and was unable to see properly through his right eye.
He supposed that he had scratched it by putting his lenses in it, but as the week progressed, it became apparent that something much more serious had happened.
He said: "For a few days, I used over-the-counter eye drops and I set all the display settings on my phone and my computer to the most brightness." weak, which seemed to do the business. "
Humphreys, who was photographed with a friend before contracting the infection, had been wearing short-sighted glasses since the age of four. He started wearing contact lenses five times a week and showered regularly until January 2018.
Mr. Humphreys noticed for the first time a scratch on one eye that, according to opticians, was an ulcer. They took scratches to his eye to test the infection, which turned positive.
The reporter has undergone two eye operations, including one to eliminate the infection, and is now waiting for a corneal transplant. On the photo waiting for surgery
Deciding to go to the optician, Mr. Humphreys was told that he had an ulcer in his eye and was advised to go immediately to the doctor. Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.
There, after being seen by a handful of eye specialists, he received five scrapes of his right eye that were tested.
"The doctors said that they could not be sure what was going on before they had the test results, but that they thought it could be wrong. A keratitis in Acanthamoeba, "said Humphreys.
"I had never heard of the infection before, but as soon as I got home, I turned to Dr. Google and suddenly, I thought to myself that was going to lose the right eye. "
A week later, the doctors told Humphreys that he had a positive test on the AK test, leaving him worried that his football days would be over.
Contact lenses can create small abrasions in the eyes, which facilitates the fixation of the body when the eyes come in contact with water.
Mr. Humphreys said: "I told the doctor that I had read some horror stories about this and asked if I needed to have my eyes removed. .
"He just looked at me and said," It could be a possibility. "
"It's at that point that I realized that it was serious."
Mr. Humphreys used disinfectant eye drops for three weeks as he was healing. Until suddenly, in March 2018, he was completely blind in the right eye.
He said, "I was going to work and my vision went completely into my right eye.
"I do not know how I managed not to collapse, but soon realized that I had to go back to the hospital."
Referred to the Birmingham and Midland Eye Center, doctors prescribed superior eye drops, which were to be applied hourly, even at night.
After weeks of sleepless nights and unable to work, Mr. Humphreys remained depressed and confined at home, while the doctors were trying to decide the best course of action.
He said, "I love my job but I could not be physically outside the house.
"I had too bad eyes and I only left to go to the hospital.
"I felt at my lowest level and the only thing that would cheer me up – playing football – was no longer an option."
After weeks of sleepless nights, because of the constant need to use eye drops and his inability to work, Mr. Humphreys remained confined to his home and depressed by the infection (photo).
The sight of Mr. Humphreys has not returned since March 2018, the year he suddenly lost his sight driving. On the photo before the 18-month test
Six months after his initial diagnosis, the doctors decided that there was only left to perform corneal reticulation in July 2018.
The procedure involves the use of ultraviolet light and vitamin B2 drops to stiffen the cornea by more tightly binding the fibers of the cornea.
While the procedure eliminated the infection, Mr. Humphreys remained blind in the right eye.
He said: "Obviously, I did not want to be blind from the right eye, but at least, knowing that the infection was gone, I could start to regain a normal life. I could finally go back to work and start going to the gym.
Mr. Humphreys still needed additional treatment. In September 2018, he underwent an amniotic membrane transplant at the right cornea, at Birmingham and West Midland Eye Center.
The procedure involves tissue grafting of the amniotic membrane – the innermost layer of the placenta – on the eye to protect the cornea.
It has anti-inflammatory and anti-scarring effects, as well as growth factors that promote the healing of wounds on the surface of the eye.
Although the treatment was a success, at Christmas 2018, after the second operation, Humphreys' outlook on life collapsed.
He said: "The reality of the situation had really hit me, I let myself go since all this had happened and I had a monotonous eye that I had to cover with a eye patch – that looked like something out of the exorcist. & # 39;
After being referred to a counselor by the general practitioner, Mr. Humphreys gradually accepted his problem.
He collaborates with the charity Fight for Sight to raise public awareness of the danger of using contact lenses while showering or swimming.
He said: "I can honestly say that if I had any idea that it was even a distant possibility, I would never have brought any contacts.
"It's crucial that people know that it's a reality and that it can happen because of something as simple as taking a shower."
Mr. Humphreys is at six weeks of a corneal transplant – an operation that replaces a cornea damaged by healthy donor tissue from a deceased.
He said, "I lost 18 months of my life because of something as simple as taking a shower with contacts.
& # 39; If I regain sight, I will never wear contacts again. Instead, like Edgar Davids – the former Dutch professional footballer – I will wear goggles to play sports. "
According to a study published last year by the Moorfield's Eye Hospital, the number of AK cases has tripled in the past eight years.
Fight For Sight said the results could be relevant for the whole of the UK because the hospital treats a large number of AK cases.
A YouGov survey for Fight for Sight found that a large portion of contact lens wearers in the UK were putting their vision at risk due to unsafe habits, unaware that they could develop an infection such as the AK.
56% of surveyed respondents reported wearing them longer than the recommended 12 hours a day, 54% said they swam or showered and 47% slept there.
At the same time, 15% of respondents had put them in their mouth to clean or lubricate them and 2% had even shared used lenses with other people.
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