She removed the non-prescription lenses that night and awoke the next morning in pain, her eye swollen with an infection that would require a year of treatment and a cornea transplant to save her vision.

"It's a cheap way to really change the way you look," said Rouse, 15, of Cleveland, who paid $25 for the over-the-counter lenses. "I see girls with them on all the time. They are easy to get."