CONTACT LENSES TODAY

September 18, 2005

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.

Baby Eyes for O.D.s
Due to the overwhelming response received to the Baby Eyes DVD, Visual Development Foundation (VDF) has added a link specifically for practitioners. The babyeyesdvd.com site offers information for consumers with the option to purchase one video at a time. The site http://doctors.babyeyesdvd.com offers doctors a separate page on which they can place wholesale orders.
Unilens Offers Custom Toric
Unilens Vision Inc. has added a custom toric option to their line of soft contact lenses with the new C-Vue 55 Custom Toric. The specialty contact lens company designed the new lens for astigmatic patients in made-to-order powers and axis in one degree steps. The C-Vue 55 is manufactured with the company’s ALGES computer-controlled lathe system. It is available for daily wear with variable replacement in single-, three- and four-packs.
CooperVision’s New Multifocal Toric
CooperVision expands its line of contact lenses with the new UltraVue PC multifocal toric lens. The new lens is made of omafilcon A phosphorylcholine (PC) material and manufactured using Balanced Progressive technology, which features a “D” lens for the dominant eye and an “N” lens for the non-dominant eye. The company says this process enables the lens to provide excellent binocular vision and stereopsis even in toric prescriptions. The UltraVue PC will be available in made-to-order parameters in single lens vials next month.
ACUVUE® ADVANCE™ Brand Contact Lenses for ASTIGMATISM are now available in a much wider range of parameters.
 As of mid July, this expansion of parameters is wide enough to match the prescriptions of approximately 98% of astigmatic patients. The roll out is as follows:

JULY PARAMETER ROLL-OUT
2190 skus = Approx. 98% of Astigmatic fits

Powers

Cylinders

Plano to -6.00D in 0.25D steps

0.75, -1.25, -1.75; Axis: 10 to 180, 10 degree steps

-6.50D to -9.00D in .50D steps

-1.25, -1.75; Axis: 90 & 180 +/- 20 (no obliques)

+0.25 to +6.00D in 0.25D steps

-0.75, -1.25, -1.75; Axis: 90 & 180 +/- 20 (no obliques)
Check http://www.ecp.acuvue.com for details.
--ADVERTISING
X-Cel Expands Lens Line
X-Cel Optical Co. has added to its line of Aris, Trivex lenses with the availability of semi-finished single vision and D28 bifocal lenses. The new lenses cover a power range from -8.00D to +5.00D with the bifocal available in add powers from 1.00D to 3.50D in 0.25D steps. The company says the lens is compatible with rimless and three-piece drill mounts, where durability is most necessary. The Aris lenses have an Abbe value of 43, impact resistance similar to polycarbonate lenses and block 100% of UVA and UVB rays.
Abstract: Keratitis in OrthoK
Doctors at the Cullen Eye Institute, Department of Ophthalmology, Baylor College of Medicine in Houston presented a review of medical literature and report an infectious complication of overnight rigid GP contact lenses. A 16-year-old girl undergoing orthokeratology for myopic reduction presented with acanthamoebic keratitis, later confirmed by laboratory testing. Recent case reports suggest Acanthamoeba is a cause of microbial keratitis among teenagers and young adults during orthokeratology treatment. The authors conclude Acanthamoeba keratitis is an emerging complication of orthokeratology in this population group.
Wilhelmus KR. Acanthamoeba keratitis during orthokeratology. Cornea. 2005 Oct; 24(7):864-6.
Editor's Commentary: Plasma Treatment May Help GP Wear
Some GP labs are now offering an added surface treatment on some GP lenses. Menicon has used plasma treatment on their GP lenses for many years. The plasma treatment is similar to that used on silicone elastomer and silicone hydrogel contact lenses. The conditions of each plasma treatment vary depending on the manufacturer’s process. This is not a negative factor, just a fact. If applied properly, the treatment will most certainly help initial wettability. It may well improve comfort also. You can scrape and scratch and polish it off as with any surface treatment, but it's still worth trying. As always, careful handling with clean hands, and compliance with case and lens cleaning regimens — including protein removal — are important factors for successful GP lens wear, even with this new treatment.
Fitting Tip: Everted Silicone Hydrogel Lenses
There have been many reports of cases of transient topographical and refractive changes with everted silicone hydrogel (S/H) lens wear. S/Hs are indeed quite different from ordinary hydrogel lenses. Silicone increases the modulus of the material and when worn inside out, these lenses often create an unintended "ortho-k" effect, especially when worn overnight. The greater the lens’ thickness (powers) and modulus, the more likely it is to cause this effect.
In many of these cases, topography reveals a well-defined red ring, as if the patient had undergone LASIK or GP corneal reshaping. To complicate matters further, most wearers can “comfortably” wear everted S/H lenses. In one instance, I saw a change of +2.00D after a patient unintentionally wore an everted lotrafilcon A S/H lens for one week CW.
This problem is much more prevalent than most of us realize and a new product has recently become available that allows for correct lens insertion each and every time. Lensvue2 is a new, FDA-approved, soft lens applicator with a built-in magnification system that enables patients to easily read the tiny print on all S/H lenses so they can identify an everted lens before applying it. This device is intended for use by patients at home and professionals in the office. More information is available at http://www.softsert.com.
Michael Feldman, O.D.
Lynbrook, NY 11563
This month at http://www.siliconehydrogels.org, review the significance of Œmodulus of elasticity‚ as well as the aetiology of soft contact lens-induced superior epithelial arcuate lesions, look into the performance of lotrafilcon B lenses intended for daily, flexible or extended wear, and read a recap of silicone hydrogel-related presentations at the 2005 BCLA conference.
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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Visit Contact Lens Spectrum ( http://www.clspectrum.com ) for interactive clinical posters and issue archives. Visit Contact Lenses Today for our Best Fitting Tips.
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