CONTACT LENSES TODAY

July 14, 2002

Contact Lenses Today® is edited by Dr. Joseph T. Barr and the staff of Contact Lens Spectrum. This week CLToday® reaches 8,622 readers in 74 countries.

No-Rub Formula OK for Any Replacement Schedule
The FDA has cleared Bausch & Lomb’s ReNu MultiPlus Multi-Purpose Solution No Rub Formula for use with all soft contact lenses, regardless of replacement schedule. Initially, the product was cleared for use only for soft lenses replaced every 30 days or less.

SH Lens Gets CE Mark for Therapeutic Use
Focus Night & Day silicone hydrogel (SH) contact lenses received the CE mark for therapeutic use. As a result, European eyecare professionals may now use the lenses as a bandage to protect the cornea, relieve corneal pain and aid corneal healing after surgery and in the treatment of acute or chronic ocular diseases.

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(For more information: http://www.ocularsciences.com)
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Holden to be Inducted Into Optometry Hall of Fame
Brien Holden, Ph.D., founder of the Cornea and Contact Lens Research Unit at the University of New South Wales, will be inducted into the National Optometry Hall of Fame during the EastWest Eye Conference (Oct. 31 to Nov. 3) in Cleveland. Dr. Holden will lecture at the conference on “Smart Surfaces — The New Frontier” and “Optometry’s Role in Blindness Prevention.” Other Hall of Fame inductees this year include: Lois Bing, O.D.; Larry DeLucas, O.D.; Melvin Shipp, O.D.; and David Sullins, O.D.

Three O’s Represented at CLES
The Education Task Force of the Contact Lens and Eyecare Symposium (CLES) has named three continuing education track leaders — one from each eyecare profession — to carry out its mission of providing “continuing education created by eyecare practitioners for eyecare practitioners.” Track leaders are Doug Becherer, O.D., Keith Harrison, F.C.L.S.A., and George Stern, M.D. The CLES takes place Jan. 23 to 26, 2003, in Orlando, Fla.

Bacteria Prefer Lathe-Cut CLs
Less bacteria attaches to contact lenses produced by soft molding (etafilcon A) than to those produced by lathe-cutting or spin-casting, according to an article in the July issue of Cornea. Researchers in Spain placed two strains of Staphylococcus epidermidis on eight types of soft lenses from the four FDA hydrogel lens groups. The slime-negative strains adhered to all the lenses but at a lower level than the slime-positive strains. On the whole, more bacteria adhered to nonionic and low water content materials.

Abstract: Hydrogel vs. Silicone Hydrogel in 1-Year Study
Signs of hypoxia-induced changes in the cornea were almost nonexistent in patients wearing silicone hydrogel (SH) lenses for 30-day continuous wear as compared to those wearing hydrogel lenses for 1-week extended wear in this 1-year prospective study. Microcysts, striae, staining and injection were significantly less with the SH lens. Early in the year, researchers noted a low amount of visible deposits on the SH lenses (although more than the soft lens rate). However, these findings are contradicted by in-vitro studies, and researchers saw no differences in visible deposits after 4 months. Post-lens debris and transient corneal indentations found with the SH lenses did not cause clinically significant problems. Brennan NA, Coles CC, Comstock TL, and Levy B. A 1-Year Prospective Clinical Trial of Balafilcon A (PureVision) Silicone-hydrogel Contact Lenses Used on a 30-day Continuous Wear Schedule. Ophthalmology 109(6):1172-1177 (2002).

Editor's Commentary: CLs Going to the Dogs
Legislation pending in Michigan would require that:

Practitioners release contact lens prescriptions to patients
Contact lens providers (even from outside the state) register with the state
Vendors have valid prescriptions or face penalties.

Let’s hope all of us who examine patients and prescribe and dispense contact lenses do so only with good oversight of the patient.
As a part of their investigation, a few Michigan lawmakers ordered contact lenses from a well-known mail-order firm using their dogs’ names. All three dogs got their lenses.

Fitting Tip: Include Referral as a Viable CL Option
Some of my colleagues just returned from the Aegean Cornea VI Conference, an update of wavefront/aberration analysis and refractive surgery procedures. One of the highlights was a review of contact lens fitting for post-refractive surgery patients by George Waring, M.D. His presentation complimented our good friend and expert Michael Ward, M.S., F.C.L.S.A., of Emory University. Dr. Waring encouraged practitioners who’d reached the limits of their expertise to refer patients with compromised corneas to a very experienced practitioner. By doing so, they’re offering their patients all available options, including reverse geometry, semi-scleral and scleral GP lenses, hybrid, piggy-back and custom-designed soft lenses.
--The Editor

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