A 67-year-old woman in the U.K. went to the hospital for a routine cataract surgery, but nothing about the visit was routine at all, according to a short article published earlier this month in the British Medical Journal.
That’s because doctors discovered 27 contact lenses in her eye while prepping her for surgery. To be clear: They found a blueish clump of 17 contact lenses initially, and another 10 upon further examination, Dr. Rupal Morjaria told Optometry Today.
“When she was seen two weeks after I removed the lenses she said her eyes felt a lot more comfortable,” Morjaria added. The doctors delayed the cataract surgery.
She apparently had worn monthly disposable contact lenses for 35 years. The patient did have at least one extenuating circumstance that could’ve accounted for the sheer number of embedded contact lenses.
“She had poorer vision in the right eye and deep-set eyes, which might have contributed to the unusually large number of retained foreign bodies,” according to the journal article. “This case highlights the importance of appropriate candidate selection and monitoring of contact lens wearers.”
The Washington Post pointed to a number of tweets confused by the story, including one that read, “How is this even possible? How did she not feel the lenses?”
How is this even possible? How did she not feel the lenses?
— Janine Duffy (@j9duffy)
The tweets didn’t stop there:
If you never had a phobia of contact lenses, well, you will now… pic.twitter.com/Bd4txhprON
— Raz (@raztweets)
that woman’s contact lenses were bound together by mucus. I have never been so disgusted in my life.
— MissanBae Worm (@therAfua)
Doctors removed 27 contact lenses from woman’s eyes during surgery she didn’t know were there. No one ever said she had an eye for detail.
— Emile Hirsch (@EmileHirsch)
I’ve worn contact lenses for 40 years, and this is just impossible to imagine
— Jim Handman (@JimHandman)
For what it’s worth, the situation surprised Morjaria and other health professionals.
“We were really surprised that the patient didn’t notice it because it would cause quite a lot of irritation while it was sitting there,” Morjaria also told Optometry Today.
8 Unexpected Signs You’re Stressed
9 Habits That May Reduce Your Risk for Developing Alzheimer’s
More from U.S. News
11 Items That Help Protect Your Health
8 Unexpected Signs You’re Stressed
9 Habits That May Reduce Your Risk for Developing Alzheimer’s
Report: This Woman Got 27 Contact Lenses Stuck in Her Eye originally appeared on usnews.com
