CONTACT LENSES TODAY

October 30, 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.


House Passes Decorative Contact Lens Bill
A few days before Halloween, the U.S. House of Representatives passed S. 172, a bill that amends the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act to protect patients from eye injuries due to the misuse of decorative plano contact lenses. The act now carries the stipulation that all contact lenses are medical devices. The Senate approved the bill in July and the president is expected to sign it into law soon. Since 2003, the FDA has issued warnings to consumers and acknowledged receiving reports of corneal ulcers, infections and loss of vision associated with decorative lens wear.

Focus Dailies Feature New Moisturizer
CIBA Vision’s Focus Dailies contact lenses now feature AquaRelease, a moisturizing agent that is gradually released into the tear film during wear. The company says distribution of the agent begins to diminish at the end of the day to ensure patients’ are compliant with their wear schedule. Focus Dailies are made of nelfilcon A material and are tinted for easier handling.

Transitions Educates Patients and Practitioners
Transitions’ “Eye Didn’t Know That!” exhibit wraps up its tour after educating consumers and eye care professionals about healthy sight. More than 170,000 consumers saw the exhibit at one of the 12 science centers it visited this year and over 1,600 professional attended a tour event. The company says professionals are also making use of its web site, downloading more than 10,000 posters and 9,000 copies of the curriculum. The exhibit is now on display at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh.

VISTAKON® has begun airing national TV advertising in support of their exciting new contact lens, ACUVUE® ADVANCE™ Brand Contact Lenses for ASTIGMATISM, and to help increase patient visits.  One advertisement — titled “Twins” — targets a younger audience and is geared towards first time contact lens wearers with astigmatism. The other — “A Day in the Life” — was created to appeal to a broader, more mature audience, including current toric wearers and dropouts. The commercials are to air on stations such as FOX, WB, MTV, and USA. Tune in!
--ADVERTISING

Abstract: Methods of Correction for Low Level Astigmatism
Researchers at the University of Manchester’s Eurolens Research department compared the visual performance of a toric soft contact lens (TS), an aspheric soft lens (AS) and spectacle correction in 30 patients with low levels of astigmatism. Participants with astigmatism between 0.75D to -1.00D were fit with each form of correction in a random order. Researchers then measured high- and low-contrast visual acuity. In patients with 2mm pupil size, TS correction resulted in better HVAC than with the AS lens. There was no difference in HCVA between TS and SC. For patients with 4mm and 6mm pupils, however, HCVA was poorer with AS versus SC and TS lenses. LCVA was similar among the three options for patients with 2mm pupils. In cases of 4mm and 6mm pupils, LCVA was similar between TS and SC, but better than the AS lens. The researchers conclude that there is little difference in HCVA and LCVA between refractive corrections in patients with small pupil sizes. For larger pupils, however, HCVA and LCVA are superior with TS contact lenses and SC when compared with AS contact lenses by half a line of acuity or more.
Morgan PB, Efron SE, Efron N, Hill EA. Inefficacy of aspheric soft contact lenses for the correction of low levels of astigmatism. Optom Vis Sci. 2005 Sep;82(9):823-8.


Editor's Commentary: Patient Loyalty
I was just thinking about the patients whom I continue to see either personally or in our clinic for nearly 30 years. Why are they so loyal?
For one thing they are not very straightforward cases: they are typically keratoconus, post-surgical or more challenging presbyopia patients. It’s not easy to park here and our fees are not low. But we do try to accommodate patient’s schedules and provide personalized care. We are thorough, if not exceedingly efficient. Our facilities are not the most attractive, but our instrumentation is state-of-the art. I do think a couple of other factors help greatly. People know that we are up-to-date on the latest technology and will use it. We communicate these new technologies and their features and benefits routinely. I also have to add, we have a great —if not the best— staff, as an added bonus.


Fitting Tip: Play it Safe
For patients who chronically flip-flop right and left RGPs and the dot on the right lens is wiped off, order a light blue lens for the right eye and a light green, grey or clear lens for the left eye. They will never mix them up again and they will never take up your chair time trying to determine which is the correct lens for the corresponding eye.
Daraius A. Unwalla, O.D.
Alexandria, Va.


This month at http://www.siliconehydrogels.org, read part two of our BCLA synopsis and learn more about toric silicone hydrogels, including guidelines for comparing the performance of different toric silicone hydrogels, a comparison of corneal swelling with toric and spherical silicone hydrogels, and one patient‚s experiences switching to these lenses.

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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