Woman's eye pain was actually due to worm infestation and the reason was THIS common mistake

A woman from New York has been left nearly blind in one eye after contracting a rare parasitic infection, after she committed a common mistake, wearing contact lenses while swimming.

Maureen Cronin, 53, a lifeguard who teaches swimming lessons, started giving swimming lessons to young children in private backyard pools in June last year. During one of the sessions, she felt an irritation in her right eye. Initially, she thought she had an eyelash stuck in her eye. However, the irritation worsened over time, eventually feeling like something was ‘scratching’ her eye from the inside.

Cronin sought medical help when the pain became excruciating, however, she was misdiagnosed multiple times, initially with a corneal laceration and later with a herpes infection. As the symptoms didn’t subside, even after months, she visited another ophthalmologist, who diagnosed her in August with acanthamoeba keratitis (AK).

Acanthamoeba keratitis is a rare, but serious eye infection you can get from an amoeba. People who wear contacts or are immunocompromised have the highest risk of contracting this condition. Though the condition is treatable, it is best to prevent it from happening.

The condition led to severe complications for Cronin. She was hospitalized for 48 days at Stony Brook University Hospital and underwent a cornea transplant in September 2024. However, her body rejected the transplant, and steroid drops prescribed to manage her pain caused her to develop glaucoma. She is completely blind in the infected eye now and is waiting to undergo a second cornea transplant to restore vision.

Though Cronin has worn contact lenses for nearly 20 years, she was never informed about the risks of wearing them while swimming. After going through the worst, she is now raising awareness to prevent others from suffering the same fate.


AK infections are rare but can be devastating. It affects the cornea, which is the clear, dome-shaped front covering of your eye. If untreated, this infection can damage your eyes and cause loss of sight. The symptoms of Acanthamoeba keratitis can look similar to most common eye infections.

The symptoms include:

• Eye pain
• Eye redness
• Blurred vision
• Sensitivity to light
• Sensation of having something in your eye
• Excessive tearing

The CDC recommends some health habits that contact lens wearers should follow:

• Washing your hands with soap and water and drying them before handling contacts
• Removing contact lenses before showering, using a hot tub, or swimming
• Cleaning, rubbing, and rinsing lenses every time you take them out
• Storing