Maureen Larrazabal recalls how she went blind for 2 years due to contact lenses

Maureen Larrazabal during a recent guest appearance on Mikee Quintos’ “Lutong Bahay.” Image: Screengrab from YouTube/GMA

Actress Maureen Larrazabal looked back on the time she went blind for two years after she slept with her contact lenses still on, leading her to get a corneal transplant.

During a recent appearance on “Lutong Bahay,” Larrazabal shared that when she slept with her contact lenses, she had an infection that “melted” in her eyes, causing her blindness.

“Bulag ako, two years. Natulog ako nang may contact lens, tapos tumitigas ‘yun ‘di ba kapag hindi ka nag-drops. Na-slit open ko ‘yung cornea, pinasukan ng Pseudomonas, so pumasok siya sa mata. Pagpasok sa mata ko, few hours lang, that bacteria will melt your eye in 24 hours, ganon siya katindi,” she narrated.

READ: Maricar Reyes almost loses eyesight due to improper use of contact lens

(I went blind for two years. I had slept with contact lenses on, and they get dry, right, if you don’t put eyedrops? I slit open my cornea, Pseudomonas got in, so it went into my eye. It takes only a few hours for that bacteria to melt your eye in 24 hours, it’s that strong.)

As defined by Cleveland Clinic, a Pseudomonas infection is a “condition that can affect one’s skin, blood, eyes, and other parts of the body.” It has the possibility for fatal infection that spreads to other areas of one’s body and triggers other serious conditions.

The “Pepito Manalo” actress shared that she was in Hong Kong when this happened and she had a corneal transplant in the Philippines the moment she got back home. “Pagdating dito, diretso ako ng Makati Med. Pag-open nila puro pus tapos wala na, wala na siyang itim,” she recalled.

(When I got here, I went straight to Makati Med. When they opened it, it was all pus and then it was gone, there wasn’t black anymore.)

According to Cleveland Clinic, pus refers to the “eye discharge that the eye sheds to clean itself.” If i is excessive or there is  unusual eye discharge that could be a sign of infection, allergies, dry eyes or other issues.

Larrazabal shared that this happened in the ’90s when she was doing the program “Kool Ka Lang” on GMA.

“Kaya very grateful ako sa GMA, alam mo kung bakit? Kasi during that time hindi nila ako tinanggalan ng show. May pinagdaanan ako pero I have something to look forward to kasi every week pumapasok ako na naka-shades,” she said.

(So I’m very grateful to GMA, you know why? Because during that time they didn’t remove me from the show. I went through something but I had something to look forward to because every week I came to work wearing shades.)

Last year, actress-author Maricar Reyes also shared her experience with the improper use of colored contact lenses, which caused her to nearly lose her sight.