Vistakon has launched 1-Day Acuvue TruEye daily disposable contacts, made of narafilcon B, a silicone hydrogel material just approved by the FDA.
Silicone hydrogel contact lenses are known for their ability to allow oxygen to reach the eye; this, combined Read more…
“Any contact lens you want. Anywhere in the world.”
This is the promise that CooperVision and Armed Forces Eyewear are making to members of the U.S. military on a new web page at coopervision.com/armedforces. (Armed Forces Eyewear is a service mark of Frames Direct, an online eyewear retailer.)
The site contains patient information about CooperVision’s portfolio of contact lenses, as well as rebate and free trial offers. Read more…
Wearing daily disposable contact lenses can reduce seasonal allergy symptoms.
In this month’s issue of Contact Lens Spectrum, Renee Reeder, OD, provides a summary of the history of daily disposable contacts and an update of the current status of these lenses. Dr. Reeder is an associate professor and the chief of the Cornea Center for Clinical Excellence at the Illinois College of Optometry (Chicago, Ill.). Read more…
A study published in a recent issue of Eye & Contact Lens indicates that children ages 8 to 12 are able to successfully wear daily disposable contacts and that most children in the study preferred wearing contact lenses to wearing eyeglasses.
The three-month study was conducted in Singapore, following a protocol similar to the recent Contact Lenses in Pediatrics (CLIP) study in the United States that found similar results among teenagers.
Participants in the study were fit with 1-Day Acuvue and 1-Day Acuvue for Astigmatism disposable contacts. All children were nearsighted (with or without astigmatism) and had not worn contact lenses prior to the study.
Of the 59 children enrolled, 53 (90 percent) completed the study successfully. At the end of the three-month study period, most of the children and their parents reported preferring the contact lenses to eyeglasses for a variety of reasons, including vision, comfort and appearance.
No eye infections occurred during the study, and the only adverse event noted was the development of a chalazion in one child’s eyelid.
(Many eye doctors recommend daily disposable contacts for children who want to wear contact lenses because the single-use lenses eliminate the need for daily lens care and contact lens solutions.)
Eye & Contact Lens is the official journal of the Contact Lens Association of Ophthalmologists.
Silicone hydrogel contact lenses, even more than conventional soft contacts, require a rubbing step when cleaning and disinfecting the lenses with “no-rub” contact lens solutions, says a prominent contact lens specialist.
Michael A. Ward, MMSc, FAAO, instructor in ophthalmology at Emory University School of Medicine (Atlanta, Ga.) and director of Emory Eye Center‘s Contact Lens Service, says adding the manual cleaning step maximizes comfort, improves vision and reduces the risk of contact lens-related eye infections.
Researchers are finding that one-step (“no-rub”) contact lens solutions often do not completely remove environmental debris, skin oils and make-up from the surface of contact lenses. These lens deposits can cause eye discomfort and vision problems, and may also decrease the effectiveness of lens disinfectants and lead to serious problems, including bacterial and fungal eye infections and Acanthamoeba keratitis.
Silicone hydrogel lenses, which allow more oxygen to reach the cornea than regular soft contacts, are as likely as regular soft lenses to accumulate lens deposits if they are not properly cleaned and disinfected after each wearing period.
If patients at Emory Contact Lens Service are not compliant with a rub-and-rinse lens care regimen and lens deposits are noted, switching to a hydrogen peroxide-based lens care system often solves the problem, Ward told online newsletter Contact Lenses Today (Oct 22).
Another option for people who are prone to contact lens deposits or fail to care for their lenses properly is to switch to daily disposable contacts, which are designed to be discarded after a single use.
This week, Unilens Vision Inc. (Largo, Fla.) launched C-VUE Advanced Toric Multifocal contact lenses. These specialty lenses correct both astigmatism and presbyopia.
According to the 1999-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), approximately 36 percent of Americans ages 20 and older have astigmatism. Presbyopia is an age-related vision problem that affects virtually everyone some time after age 40.
Eye doctors can customize the new C-VUE Advanced Toric Multifocal lenses for their patients by specifying astigmatic and multifocal powers, multifocal zone size, lens diameter, base curve and more. The monthly disposable contact lenses also feature advanced hydration properties for all-day comfort, according to the company.
Unilens Vision Inc. offers a free trial program and a 120-day performance guarantee. The lenses are available exclusively from independent eye care professionals. Read more at www.unilens.com.
A new survey from the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) indicates that fall is one of the most troublesome times of year for people with eye allergies.
Although the springtime is well-known as allergy season, “the fall brings new allergy triggers that are not prevalent in the spring, such as ragweed,” according to the AAFA.
During this time, contact lens wearers with allergies may experience contact lens discomfort as allergens build up on their lenses over time. Symptoms may include ocular itching, redness and tearing.
Studies show that daily disposable contacts can be a more comfortable option than contacts replaced every two weeks or more for allergy sufferers, the AAFA says. For this reason, Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc., maker of 1 Day Acuvue Moist brand contact lenses, is supporting the AAFA’s new, educational brochure called “Eye Health and Allergies.”
The free brochure provides “vital allergy season advice for the nation’s 40 million contact lens wearers” and includes a trial pair certificate for 1 Day Acuvue Moist contacts. To download the brochure, visit the AAFA website.
At least 60 percent of contact lenses prescribed in the United States are silicone hydrogel contacts or daily disposable contacts, according to a recent study conducted by the Centre for Contact Lens Research (Ontario, Canada).
The researchers surveyed 158 eye doctors regarding the types of contact lenses they prescribed for a total of 1,654 patients. The survey was part of a larger study designed to assess patient and eye care practitioner compliance with recommended replacement frequency of contact lenses.
The study found:
Also, 12 percent of patients reported wearing their lenses overnight as extended wear contacts. Even among patients wearing daily disposable lenses, 19 percent reported wearing their contacts overnight occasionally, frequently or almost every night.
Source: What contact lens materials are patients wearing? Contact Lens Spectrum. August 2009.
New SofLens daily disposable contact lenses by Bausch & Lomb offer the benefits of daily disposable contacts and an advanced optical design, according to the company. The new lenses feature Bausch & Lomb’s proprietary High Definition Optics, which is designed to reduce blur, halos and glare for optimal vision.
SofLens daily disposable contact lenses also feature a thin lens design and slow-release moisture formula for all-day comfort, which is key for sensitive eyes, the company says. As with all daily disposable lenses, contact lens care is unnecessary and there is less risk of lens deposit build-up, which can lead to eye infections.
For a free trial of SofLens daily disposable lenses and a High Definition Optics lens demo, visit www.soflens.com.
A new survey by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America found that allergy symptoms negatively influence contact lens wear, reports Optician Online.
Of the more than 800 people surveyed, two out of every three said wearing contacts is uncomfortable when they have allergy symptoms such as itchy, red and watery eyes. About 45 percent of the survey respondents reported wearing their contacts less often and 12 percent said they ceased wearing contacts when suffering from eye allergies.
Mike Tringale, the foundation’s director of external affairs, noted that wearing contacts less frequently “creates a wide range of emotions among allergy sufferers.” When contact lens wearers use glasses instead of contacts, 37 percent report feeling less attractive, 29 percent feel less confident and 26 percent say they are less able to perform activities as well than when they are wearing contacts.
According to the Medical Clinics of North America, nearly half of US residents have allergy symptoms, and 75 percent of those symptoms affect the eyes. Allergies can trigger pink eye and other problems. It’s recommended that allergy sufferers speak with their eye doctor about disposable contact lenses and eye drops to help relieve symptoms, which will ultimately help with contact lens comfort.
