CONTACT LENSES TODAY

November 2, 2003

Contact Lenses Today® is edited by Dr. Joseph T. Barr and the staff of Contact Lens Spectrum. This week CLToday® reaches nearly 10,000 readers in 74 countries.

FDA Clears Laser for Myopia and Hyperopia Treatment
Lumenis, Ltd.'s strategic partner WaveLight Laser Technologie AG of Germany, recently received FDA marketing clearance for the Allegretto Wave Excimer Laser, which provides treatment for myopia and hyperopia. The refractive laser is cleared for both indications with treatment ranges for myopia of up to -12.00D and with astigmatism of up to -6.00D. The FDA granted approval for treating hyperopia of up to +6.00D and with astigmatism of up to +5.00D, not exceeding a mean spherical equivalent of +6.00D. The Allegretto Wave is the first laser to receive concurrent approvals for myopia and hyperopia in the United States.

"Invisible Gloves" an Alternative for O.D.s
According to Gloves In A Bottle, Inc., its Gloves In A Bottle product helps protect against reactions to hard coats, solvents, latex, latex powders and other irritating substances found in disposable gloves. The company says that its product offers those in the optometry field protection without having their dexterity adversely affected by latex gloves. Gloves In A Bottle was originally designed for machinists and mechanics, but, according to a company spokesperson, once a dermatologist got a hold of it and realized its benefits, the company repackaged the product and now markets it to many industries that rely on protection from latex gloves. Gloves In A Bottle rapidly absorbs into and bonds with the outer layer of skin, creating a protective layer. The product doesn't wash off; it comes off naturally after approximately four hours with exfoliated skin cells. For more information, visit http://www.glovesinabottle.com.

NOT ALL LENS CARE SOLUTIONS ARE THE SAME! Opti-Free Express MPDS contains POLYQUAD as the preservative system. Most competitive lens care solutions contain PHMB as the preservative. PHMB is an abbreviation for polyhexamethylene biguanide. Other PHMB ingredient names may include polyaminopropyl biguanide (DYMED*) and polyhexanide.
Several recent contact lens clinical studies have demonstrated differences in corneal staining between formulations containing PHMB and Opti-Free Express with POLYQUAD.^{1, 2} Opti-Free Express is formulated to minimize preservative uptake and release.
Recommend PHMB-Free Opti-Free Express to all of your soft contact lens patient.
Reference: ¹Jones, L, et al. Asymptomatic Corneal Staining Associated with a Polyaminopropyl Biguanide Preserved Care Regimen. Opt Vis Sci. 2002;79:753-761.
²Pritchard, N.; Young, G., et al. Image Analysis of Corneal Staining Related to Multipurpose Disinfecting Systems. CLAE March 2003.
*Trademark of another company.
--ADVERTISING

CIBA Surveys the Impact of Consumer Advertising
In a recent CIBA Vision survey of eyecare practitioners, 75% of respondents said that they believe that consumer advertising is effective in bringing patients into the office. Seventy-eight percent said that fewer than 25% of patients cite consumer advertising in their purchasing decisions, but the messages in consumer advertising do carry an impact, with new technology having the biggest impact (58%) and price having the next biggest impact (17%). Of those who responded to the survey, 60% of eyecare practitioners said they favor increased consumer advertising by contact lens manufacturers.

Abstract: CLs Negatively Influence Corneal Physiology
Investigators recently studied the effects of contact lenses on corneal thickness and curvature and concluded that both soft and GP contact lenses cause corneal thickening and corneal flattening in the first months, but that they also cause corneal thinning and steepening with time. The investigators included 84 eyes of 45 patients (26 female and 19 male) in their study. They performed ophthalmic examinations, corneal thickness measurements in nine regions and corneal topography before the subjects wore contact lenses and after one month, six months and 12 months of wear. The researchers categories the subjects into three groups according to duration of wear and into two subgroups according to lens type. They stated in their conclusions that the alterations in corneal thickenss and curvature serve as evidence that contact lense negatively influence corneal physiology.
Yeniad, B; Yigit, B; Issever, H; Bilgin, L.K. Effects of Contact Lenses on Corneal Thickness and Corneal Curvature During Usage Eye & Contact Lens 2003 Oct;29(4):223-229.

Editor's Commentary: Shrink Wraps on Caps Still a Bother
I heard from a startling number of you regarding my rant about protective wrappers on eye drop and solution bottle caps. One reader had the same type of diatribe regarding wine bottle corks. Another wrote:
I too have trouble getting the wrapping off dropper bottles. I've found that the tops can still be twisted off with the wrapping intact. Once the top is off, the wrapping can then be easily removed since the bottom of the wrapping is broken.
--Dan Lowe, OD, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
The problem is, I have tried this and they still drive me crazy. Next week I'll move on to a more important topic.

Fitting Tip: A Pointer for Assessing Lens Rotation
Sometimes when assessing a soft toric lens rotation and stability, the alignment marks are hard to find. If an alignment mark is hard to see on the patient, then use a Sharpie marker to dot the 6:00 position. Then remove the lens and look for the factory mark with a magnifying loop and compare the mark to the dot position to determine what the on-eye rotation had been. You'd preferably want to do this on a trial or old lens that the patient is going to replace soon anyway. If the patient is actually going to keep the lens, then the dot will fade away anyway from anywhere between a few hours to a few weeks.
--Kerri Dietz Pillen, OD
Bellevue, Nebr.

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