Aug 21, 2015 01:25 PM EDT By Rashmi Kalia, UniversityHerald Reporter

According to a new survey from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), a majority of the contact lens wearers in the United States are at risk for eye infections and other complications for poor hygiene behavior, USA TODAY reported.

The new survey from the CDC says that almost every one of the 41 million estimated contact lens wearers in the USA do not follow hygienic habits related to the wearing of contact lenses.

According to the survey, 51% of contact users reported not taking off their lenses while sleeping and 82.3% of contact wearers admitted to keeping their contact lens cases on longer than recommended.

"The lens case can get dirty, and germs from the case get onto the lens or vice versa, and eventually they get onto your eye and attack your cornea," Steinemann told USA TODAY Network.

He said that eye infections could happen within twenty-four hours of wearing a compromised lens.

According to Thomas Steinemann, a clinical spokesman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology, not following hygiene related to the use of contact lenses can lead to serious eye infections and even blindness.

The Contact users were surveyed in an online survey administered by the CDC in collaboration with the Contact Lens Assessment Youth group.

One-third of those surveyed said they suffered from red or painful eyes related to wearing contact lenses.

According to USA TODAY, Steinemann said, "Honestly, if patients ask the safest thing to do I would say take the lens out [when sleeping,]. When you have the plastic contact lens over the eye, you are depriving the eye of oxygen but also increasing the risk of germs attacking the cornea."

"People get in a routine and tend to get very comfortable with certain routines and for a while they get away with it, but eventually they wont," he added.

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