Identification of microorganisms associated with reusable color contact lens trial sets in private eye clinics and offices in Tehran in 2013

It is of special importance to consider disinfection principles for next use or all types of reusable trial contact lenses; in order to prevent of transferring infectious agents from one patient to another.The aim of this research was to study the rate of observing disinfecting principles forreusable color contact lens trial sets by the practitioners in the optometry and ophthalmology offices and private eye clinics in Tehran. In this observational cross-sectional study, 42 eye centers (including 3 private eye clinics, 14 ophthalmology offices and 25 optometry offices) in Tehran using reusable color contact lens trial sets to present color contact lenses were checked. Sampling were made randomly from the surface of color contact lenses trial set (totally 65 samples obtained). Samples were cultured in standard laboratory conditions and the data were analyzed statistically for “Ratio Comparison Test”; using SPSS software (version 19). In some samples, one type and in some others two types of microorganisms were grown concurrently. In 81.5% of the samples, the bacterial contamination including Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Citrobacter, Klebsiella, Proteus, Diphtheroids, and Macrococcus was observed and in 18.5% of the samples, no bacterial contamination was found. Based on the findings, it seems that the present method in using reusable color contact lens trial sets may not be a suitable method.