Effingham Eye Care

Call or Text

Call or Text

912-826-3949

Open mobile navigation
  • Home
  • New Patient Center
    • Online Forms
    • Payment Options
  • Eyecare Services
    • Eye & Vision Exams
    • Contact Lens Exams
    • Lasik Eye Surgery
    • Hard to Fit Contacts
    • Computer Vision
    • Sunglasses
  • Frame Selection
  • Meet The Doctors
  • Our Optical
  • Myopic Control
  • Pay My Bill
  • Contact Us
  • Community Content
    • Common Eye Conditions
      • Age-Related
      • Cognitive and Acquired
      • Vision Impairment
      • Injury & Irritation
      • Eye Lids
      • Changes in Appearance
    • Contact Lenses
    • Eye Diseases
    • Eyeglasses
      • Eyeglass Lenses
    • Eye Symptoms
    • How the Eyes Work
      • Basic Visual Skills
    • Pediatric Vision
    • Protecting Your Eyes
    • Visual Rehabilitation
    • Vision Problems
    • What is Vision Therapy
    • Vision Therapy Programs
    • We Can Help With
      • Cataracts
      • Corneal Disorders
        • Disorders
      • Glaucoma
      • Refractive Disorders
      • Adult Strabismus
      • Retinal Disorders
    • Newsletters
      • Glasses & Frames
      • Contacts
      • Tips for Healthy Eyes
      • Conditions That Affect Vision
      • Kid's Vision
      • Amazing, Interesting Eyes
      • Medical Perspectives
  • Care Credit
  • Home >
  • Articles >
  • Common Eye Conditions >
  • Injury & Irritation >
  • Acanthamoeba Keratitis

Acanthamoeba Keratitis

  • Created in Common Eye Conditions, Injury & Irritation
Image of a woman holding a tissue to her eye.

Acanthamoeba keratitis

Acanthamoeba keratitis is a relatively rare type of eye infection, but it can become quite serious. If left untreated, Acanthamoeba eventually leads to vision loss, requiring a corneal transplant to restore sight. Understanding how to prevent this infection is key.

What Is Acanthamoeba Keratitis?

Acanthamoeba is a type of microscopic, single-celled organism known as an amoeba. Acanthamoeba live in all sorts of water sources. These parasites exist in tap water, natural bodies of water, wells, hot tubs, sewage, and can survive in the moisture in soil. When an Acanthamoeba infects the translucent, outer layer of the eye (the cornea), Acanthamoeba keratitis results.

Symptoms of Acanthamoeba Keratitis

The symptoms of Acanthamoeba keratitis include eye pain, redness, sensitivity to light, blurred vision, excessive tearing, and the sensation that something is stuck in one’s eye. These symptoms reflect those of more common eye infections like pink eye, and as a result the infection can be misdiagnosed.

If you experience any of these symptoms, it is important to see an eye care professional right away, as Acanthamoeba keratitis and other eye infections can lead to permanent loss of vision if not addressed immediately.

Who Is at Risk of Contracting Acanthamoeba Keratitis?

Individuals who wear contact lenses are substantially more likely to become infected with Acanthamoeba keratitis. Improperly cleaned and disinfected contact lenses, wearing contact lenses while swimming, bathing, showering, or hot tubbing also increase the risk.

Precautions against Acanthamoeba Keratitis

One can take several precautions against becoming infected with Acanthamoeba keratitis, such as always taking proper care of contact lenses, which includes cleaning and rubbing them after each use with a brand of contact solution recommended by an eye care professional. Disinfecting a contact lens case while not in use may also prevent infection. It is also recommended that contact wearers avoid wearing contact lenses while swimming, showering, or participating in any water-related activity. If a patient chooses to wear contact lenses in the water, airtight swimming goggles should be worn, and lenses should be removed for cleaning immediately after.

Diagnosis and Treatment

The Acanthamoeba keratitis infection is often mistaken for more common eye conditions, and usually not properly diagnosed until after the failed use of antibiotics. Once diagnosed, Acanthamoeba keratitis can be fairly difficult to cure, but is treated with topical anti-microbial agents. If symptoms persist, a corneal transplant might be necessary for the patient to achieve a full recovery.

  • Common Eye Conditions
    • Age-Related
    • Cognitive and Acquired
    • Vision Impairment
    • Injury & Irritation
    • Eye Lids
    • Changes in Appearance
  • Contact Lenses
  • Eye Diseases
  • Eyeglasses
    • Eyeglass Lenses
  • Eye Symptoms
  • How the Eyes Work
    • Basic Visual Skills
  • Pediatric Vision
  • Protecting Your Eyes
  • Visual Rehabilitation
  • Vision Problems
  • What is Vision Therapy
  • Vision Therapy Programs
  • We Can Help With
    • Cataracts
    • Corneal Disorders
      • Disorders
    • Glaucoma
    • Refractive Disorders
    • Adult Strabismus
    • Retinal Disorders
  • Newsletters
    • Glasses & Frames
    • Contacts
    • Tips for Healthy Eyes
    • Conditions That Affect Vision
    • Kid's Vision
    • Amazing, Interesting Eyes
    • Medical Perspectives

Contact Us

We look forward to hearing from you.

Featured Links

Click to find out more

  • Online Forms

    Our patient forms are available online so they can be completed in the convenience of your own home or office.

  • Services

    We strive to provide complete care for our patients. Learn more about all the services we provide.

Hours of Operation

Our Regular Schedule

Monday:

9:00 am-5:00 pm

Tuesday:

9:00 am-5:00 pm

Wednesday:

9:00 am-5:00 pm

Thursday:

9:00 am-5:00 pm

Friday:

9:00 am-1:00 pm

Saturday:

Closed

Sunday:

Closed

Location

Find us on the map

Read Our Reviews

  • "I’ve been going to Dr. Anderson for over five years now and even though I only see him once a year for my annual exam, he and his staff always make me feel very welcome and take care of all my eye care needs. Anderson Optometry is the best at what they do and make you feel right at home."

Featured Articles

Read up on informative topics

  • April Newsletter: Tired of Contacts? Consider Orthokeratology.

    Wish you didn't have to wear your daily or monthly contact lenses? Orthokeratology can sharpen your vision. ...

    Read More
  • April Newsletter: Corneal Abrasion Could Lead to Infection. See Your Eye Doctor!

    Has something scratched your eye? A visit to the eye doctor could help you avoid a serious infection. ...

    Read More
  • March Newsletter: Are Your Eyes Getting Enough Vitamin D?

    Not getting enough of a key vitamin might increase your risk of several eye diseases. ...

    Read More
  • March Newsletter: Is Your Prescription Up to Date? What You Need to Know about When and Why You should See Your Optometrist

    Not sure when you need to see the eye doctor? ...

    Read More
  • Saccadic Fixators

    This entails a wall-mounted square board with a starburst design. Along the various striations of the starburst are lighted buttons. As the buttons light up, the patient works quickly to see how many of these lit buttons they can push before they go out. The key is to keep the head still. Peripheral ...

    Read More
  • Patches

    Eye patches are used to strengthen muscle control in weak eyes. By placing a patch over the strong eye, the weaker eye is forced to do the heavy lifting. While it may be uncomfortable for the patient at first, the muscle controlling the weaker eye will become tougher and more resilient. This will allow ...

    Read More
  • Rotation Trainers

    Rotation trainers consist of a disk – with various designs – that is attached to a rod-like base. As the disk rotates, the patient is asked to perform tasks that are designed to test and enhance eye-hand coordination, space awareness, perceptual awareness and visual acuity. ...

    Read More
  • Computer Software

    Computer aided vision therapy consists of a software package designed to enhance eye tracking skills, visual thinking, processing skills and binocular vision skills. Eye teaming, focusing and tracking are not optical in nature, and problems in these areas are the result of poor eye muscles. Specialized ...

    Read More
  • Prisms

    A prism has the same cross-section across the entire length of its shape. When used in eyeglasses, they often correct abnormalities associated with nearsightedness, farsightedness and double vision. Eyeglasses, or corrective lenses, reduce or increase the size of the image based on the eyes’ ability ...

    Read More
  • February Newsletter: Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) Awareness Month

    Do you know how age-related macular degeneration could affect your vision? ...

    Read More

Newsletter Signup

Sign up for more articles

Social Media

  • Copyright © 2023 MH Sub I, LLC dba iMatrix.
  • Admin Log In
  • Site Map