Contacts - can it harm my eyes?

[Sannah25]

I have blepharitis, caused by gland dysfunction, and dry eyes as a result. I find that I can tolerate contacts if I wear them a few times a week for no longer than 4-5 hrs. If this ok, it means I don't have to completely give up on either acting or swimming - and those are both things I love. Will it make my eyes worse if I continue to occassionally wear contacts? My doctor says I can wear contacts as much as I like - well, within reason - since it's my eyelids, not my eyes that are causing problems, but I've heard horror stories.

I'd love to hear your experiences.

[rooneyandfergie]

contacts have really destroyed my life. sounds grave but its true at least for me. my eyes became really red once after wearing contacts and many new veins that grew remained. I dont think you should continue to wear them especially if you have blepharitis. that was what i had before my 'contact lens redness' incident. to this day, i really regret wearing contact lens and the subsequent redness it has caused my eyes

[RobLIC]

As a soft and then hard contact lens user with MGD/bleph, I've posed this question many times. The answer is usually this: if you have bleph and want to wear soft contact lenses, it is safest to use daily disposables over 2-week or monthly soft lenses. That way any bacterial matter that might stay with the lens is thrown away every day.

[tearless2]

Why do you have to give up swimming if you have to wear glasses? I bought prescription goggles to swim in. I think they are called rec specs. Here's the link, hope this helps:
http://www.sportrx.com/order.asp?product_id=RS23