CONTACT LENSES TODAY

July 9, 2006

Contact Lenses Today® is edited by Dr. Joseph T. Barr and the staff of Contact Lens Spectrum. This week CLToday® reaches more than 12,000 readers in 74 countries.


FTC Warns Internet CL Retailers
On June 27, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sent 18 warning letters to online retailers of cosmetic or colored contact lenses. According to the FTC, most had claims on the company web site that cosmetic lenses are non-prescription or do not require a prescription. The FTC also notes that most of these retailers may not be verifying that consumers who attempt to purchase lenses have valid prescriptions. The letters urge the retailers to review the Fairness to Contact Lens Consumers Act and revise their practices as necessary to ensure they are in compliance. They also remind retailers that violations of the rule are punishable by civil penalties of up to $11,000 per violation.
    The FTC has issued, “The Contact Lens Rule: A Guide for Prescribers and Sellers,” in order to educate contact lens prescribers and sellers about their obligations under the Contact Rule and, “The Eyes Have It – Get Your Prescription,” to educate contact lens consumers about their rights. Both are available from the FTC web site at http://www.ftc.gov.
    In a statement, Thomas Crooks, O.D., president of the AOA says, “The American Optometric Association applauds the federal government for their action and persistence in enforcing the Contact Lens Rule for decorative and cosmetic lenses … The AOA looks forward to continued work with the FDA and FTC in the future to protect and educate consumers.”

Hydrogel Vision Pulls Out of Utah
As a direct result of contact lens legislation passed in the state earlier this year, Hydrogel Vision Corp. will stop doing business in Utah, rather than lose control of distribution of its Extreme H2O lenses. The law requires contact lens manufacturers to sell products to mail order outlets, mass merchandisers and other alternative channels of distribution. Steven T. Schuster, president of the company, says he considers the requirements unreasonable. “The policy of limiting sales reflects our assessment of the importance of dealing with professional customers whose ability to monitor and follow-up with patients will help promote a successful wearing experience …”
    Mr. Schuster describes the Utah law as special interest legislation and also points out that Utah is the home of the country’s largest mail order contact lens company. “We consider that the alternative channels designated in Utah are not the equal of eyecare professionals when it comes to the critical issue of patient care and follow-up,” he says.
    Kevin McCallum, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Operations for Utah–based 1-800 CONTACTS, says the company is surprised by the announcement. “We are surprised by Hydrogel’s announcement. Basically, they would rather abandon a market than sell their lenses on the medical merits.” He also referenced a recent Hydrogel Vision ad that reads in part, “The Extreme H2O lens is a lens that cannot be shopped around,” and “a lens that will retain your replacement business.”
    “1-800 CONTACTS believes that tempting eye doctors to prescribe a contact lens on anything other than the medical merits of the lens creates ethical and professional issues,” says Mr. McCallum. “At a minimum, their sales policy is contrary to the AMA’s code of medical ethics, creates a conflict of interest for the doctor according to the JAMA and places constraints on patient choice.” He added that Hydrogel's decision raises questions about their lenses and whether the company believes they could effectively compete in a market where lenses are sold on medical merits alone.
    Mr. Schuster was not available for further comment at this time.

Revision
Last week’s CLToday featured news about a new Vistakon program for consumers. This information is incorrect. The program is a complimentary online service offered through the company’s existing practitioner site and aimed at facilitating appointment scheduling for new contact lens patients. CLToday regrets the error. A revised version of the story appears below:

Vistakon Launches New Program
Vistakon announces the launch of its Click-to-be-Contacted website, a complimentary online service designed to facilitate appointment scheduling for new contact lens patients. Research conducted among consumers who visited the site revealed that nearly 64% of consumers interested in an eye exam did not schedule an appointment with an eyecare professional. While the site provides a list of Acuvue practices near the consumer’s residence, consumers cited the inconvenience of scheduling an appointment as the main deterrent.
    Consumers who respond to a Free Trial offer on http://www.acuvue.com are provided with a list of doctors in their area. When they choose the Click-to-be-Contacted icon, they enter their contact information, which is sent immediately to the doctor’s office. The office then contacts the patient to schedule an exam. Doctors who wish to participate in the program should visit http://www.ecp.acuvue.com.

Patients Report Comfort, Crisp Vision with ACUVUE® OASYS™ What are contact lens wearers saying about the ACUVUE® OASYS™ Brand Contact Lenses with HYDRACLEAR™ Plus? In a recent study, 92% of patients reported the ACUVUE® OASYS™ Brand Contact Lenses felt fresh and maintained natural moisture in adverse environments. 74% reported comfort while on the computer and 83% said they forgot they were wearing contact lenses when wearing the ACUVUE® OASYS™ Brand. And, 80% reported that ACUVUE® OASYS™ felt as natural as their own eyes. Also, 90% of patients reported crisp, clear vision at every moment.

--ADVERTISING

Essilor Announces GP Plasma Treatment
Essilor Laboratories of America in conjunction with Paragon Vision Sciences announces the availability of the new Plasma Purified plasma treatment for GP contact lenses. The company says the plasma process utilizes electrical energy that transforms the molecular structure of a lens to create a more wettable and comfortable lens. Plasma Purified treatment is available on all lenses made with Paragon HDS technology and FluoroPerm GP materials.

Wink Interactive and AllAboutVision.com Announce Alliance
Wink Interactive has signed an agreement to secure educational content from AllAboutVision.com for use on the company’s WinkPad interactive educational tools. The partnership was established to deliver comprehensive and doctor-reviewed information on eye health and vision correction options to patients in the waiting room through use of the WinkPad device. AllAboutVision’s articles are developed with the input of an advisory board of eyecare professionals and one or more of the doctors on the board review all health-related articles prior to publication. Wink Interactive and AllAboutVision will work cohesively to reformat these articles into user-friendly content for use on the WinkPad.

Largest Ever Twin Study Underway
The Vision Cooperative Research Centre in Australia is undertaking the largest twin study in the world to investigate myopia and other eye conditions. The study examined 1,200 identical and non-identical twins (both male and female) between the ages of 18 to 88. The Centre says studies of twins are particularly useful for understanding myopia, allowing researchers to look at the interaction between heredity and environmental influences. The large number of participants and wide age range in this study will allow better examination of the role of genetic and non-genetic factors in the development of refractive errors, particularly myopia, according to the Centre.

Global Keratoconus Congress 2007
Mark your calendars for the first-ever Global Keratoconus Congress to be held January 26-28, 2007 in Las Vegas. The Global Keratoconus Congress is an assembly of experts in the field of patient care, teaching and research. They will share the latest information on this chronic sight-threatening condition that affects one in 2,000 people. Attendees will learn about the latest approaches to contact lens fitting, surgical techniques, clinical research and appropriate third-party reimbursement for medically necessary contact lens care. Manufacturers and laboratories that support the care of these patients will assist in demonstrating the usefulness of their latest products and treatments. More information will be coming soon.

Abstract: Contact Lens Impact on Quality of Life
Researchers at Flinders University’s National Health and Medical Research Council Centre for Clinical Eye Research’s Department of Ophthalmology in Australia aimed to develop and validate a questionnaire for the measurement of the impact of contact lenses on quality of life (QoL), The Contact Lens Impact on Quality of Life (CLIQL) Questionnaire. They used conventional methods to develop and validate the questionnaire and Rasch analysis to assure content validity, repeatability, construct validity and low respondent burden. Item identification and selection were performed with an extensive literature review, professional advice and lay focus groups. Item reduction used focus groups and data from 161 subjects who completed a 90-item pilot questionnaire. Validity and reliability, from data of 128 additional subjects, were assessed using Rasch analysis, intraclass correlation coefficient and Bland-Altman limits of agreement.
    Rasch analysis and standard psychometric analyses showed the 28-item questionnaire is a valid and reliable measure of QoL in contact lens wearers with good validity and reliability.
Pesudovs K, Garamendi E, Elliot DB. The Contact Lens Impact on Quality of Life (CLIQ) Questionnaire: Development and Validation. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2006 Jul;47(7):2789-96.


Editor's Commentary: Comments from Readers
We enjoy getting comments from readers on a variety of contact lens topics and in response to news we have "printed" or should I say “cybered?” Either way, it is written in a computer file. One comment we received last week was about a 1-800-CONTACTS advertisement that lead our reader to believe, as I have when I saw the same ad, that all a customer needs to do is call the company and read the numbers and words from their box of lenses to get their lens prescription filled. I would think that 1-800-CONTACTS would then tell the customer to go back to their doctor and get their prescription or better yet, help them by contacting their doctor for them.
    Our second commentator last week wanted us to make it clear that people could get other results with other overnight Ortho-K/corneal reshaping designs that would vary from the CRT data reported in last week’s abstract. Our abstracts report on published research papers, so in those cases, we are simply the messenger. Most of the data I've seen on corneal reshaping is, in my opinion, fairly similar from design to design. Our reader wanted me to make a statement that perhaps we had been misleading. In this case, I would say, no, we would never purposefully mislead our readership, and so, do not need to make a correction.


Fitting Tip: More on High Riding GP Lenses
I read last week’s tip on high riding GP lenses with interest. I agree that optimal centration requires a good back surface fit with, at a minimum, central alignment and avoidance of excessive peripheral clearance. However, good front surface design is also important. Control of mid-peripheral and edge thickness is crucial in the management of decentration, both for lenses that ride high and those that ride low. Once you perfect back surface geometry and physical fit, front surface design becomes critical.
Keith Edwards, FCOptom, DipCLP, F.A.A.O.,
via e-mail.


This month at http://www.siliconehydrogels.org, review a study investigating epithelial barrier function and learn more about the appearance and significance of ‘conjunctival epithelial flaps’ – including a case study with video footage.

Report adverse contact lens reactions here: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch/ or call (800) FDA-1088.

Access a reporting form for complications you've seen that were a result of contact lenses dispensed without a valid prescription at the Association of Regulatory Boards of Optometry's (ARBO's) Web site: http://www.arbo.org/arbo.asp?dt=R&doc=Complications. Complete and send the form online or print it out and fax it to (866) 886-6164.

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