The news today that surgeons have removed 27 contact lenses from the eye of a 67-year-old woman who attended Solihull Hospital for routine cataract surgery will not be too surprising to most optometrists and contact lens opticians. Patients might imagine lost lenses going on a fantastic journey through their brain and to other areas of the body but we know where lenses hide and many of us will have seen cases of apparently-lost soft and RGP lenses falling out after a few days or being found in the dark reaches of the upper fornix. What is remarkable is quite how many lenses can be stored there with so little discomfort and with no infection.

The flip side of this patient is the ones who genuinely lose a lens and yet are convinced it is still 'stuck' in their eye. Sometimes the indentation from a tight soft contact lens can leave an impression on the conjunctiva that looks all to much like the edge of a contact lens. Patients have been know to spend time trying to prise these ghost lenses out of their eyes.

If you'd like to brush up on your contact lens fitting and aftercare skills why not try the new interactive CET at CETpoints.com. Our latest course; A review of contact lens fitting and aftercare by contact lens optician of the year, Suzanne Cerwinski, is worth 1 interactive CET point and includes video and tips to help you assess lens fit and recognise some of the more common aftercare complications.