The company’s latest generation hybrid contacts made with this new technology will feature SynergEyes’ MaxVu rigid gas permeable material in the central optic zone, surrounded by its new Flex2O silicone hydrogel material, which transmits significantly more oxygen to the front of the eye than conventional soft lens materials.

SynergEyes plans to market the new hybrid contact lenses under its new Duette brand, and will soon be releasing two lenses: the Duette hybrid contact lens for astigmatism (currently available in limited release) and the Duette multifocal lens for presbyopia.

Both lenses are approved for daily wear to correct up to 20 diopters (D) of nearsightedness or farsightedness and up to 6.0 diopters of astigmatism, according to the company.

“Duette hybrid contact lenses represent a significant advancement in the contact lens industry and give eye care professionals an innovative product that delivers an unprecedented combination of visual acuity and comfort to a broad range of patients,” said Jim Ham, CEO of SynergEyes, in a press release issued by the company.

The company is planning a nationwide launch of the Duette hybrid lens for astigmatism and a limited release of the Duette multifocal hybrid lens for presbyopia in early 2011.

For more information about hybrid contact lenses, contact your eye care professional or visit the SynergEyes website.

Subconjunctival hemorrhage

Researchers in Japan evaluated 45 contact lens wearers (ages 18 to 45) with SCH, 200 age-matched control subjects who did not wear contact lenses and 200 age-matched controls who wore contacts. None of the eyes in the control groups had subconjunctival hemorrhages.

The conjunctiva (the clear, thin membrane overlying the sclera or “white” of the eye) was divided into eight equal regions and evaluated for the presence of pinguecula, conjunctivochalasis (loosening and/or excess growth of the conjunctiva) and other abnormalities.

Results of the study included:

• Contact lens-related SCH typically affected one or two temporal (lateral, closer to the ear) regions of the conjunctiva.
• SCH occurred significantly more frequently in eyes with pinguecula and conjunctivochalasis.
• The effect of downward gaze or digital (finger) pressure on the extent of conjunctivochalasis was more marked in eyes with SCH.

The study authors concluded that pinguecula and conjunctivochalasis are major risk factors for contact lens-related subconjunctival hemorrhage.

Though the exact cause of pinguecula and conjunctivochalasis is unknown, they may result from chronic dry eye, overexposure to the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) radiation or allergy-related swelling with eventual stretching of the conjunctiva.

Severe cases of pinguecula and conjunctivochalasis that are unsightly or cause eye discomfort can be treated surgically.

Safigel's new hyaluronate-gel contact lenses have received FDA approval.

Company promotional material says the lens “replenishes the pre- and post-lens tear film, maximizing lens comfort throughout the longest wearing times.”

Safigel lenses received FDA marketing approval in December 2009 for three versions (only the daily disposable version known as Safigel 1 Day currently is available):

• Daily disposable soft lens.
• Daily disposable toric for astigmatism, caused by an irregularly shaped eye surface.
• Daily disposable multifocal for people with presbyopia.

All lenses are water soluble (hydrophilic) and are made of a material known as methafilcon A, associated with high water content and stability.

A company official told Contact Lens Headlines that eye care practitioners can obtain sample kits directly from Safigel while agreements with distributors are being finalized.

Optician journal says the company originally was formed in 2001 in Gorizia, Italy as Safegel.

If you are on a budget, you may need to consider costs versus benefits of Acuvue's 1-Day TruEye daily disposable contact lenses.

Acuvue’s 1-Day TruEye daily disposables are made of what the company describes as a “breathable” type of silicone hydrogel contact lens material known as narafilcon B.

Before Acuvue offered silicone hydrogel dailies, these types of contact lenses were replaced only at intervals ranging from weekly to monthly.

But despite benefits such as extra comfort, some eye care practitioners say daily disposable silicone hydrogel contact lenses are roughly twice as expensive as other types.

And because the lenses are disposed of daily, the comfort aspect may not be as much of a factor as it is with lenses that have longer replacement schedules.

“Silicone hydrogel lenses may be overkill for daily disposables,” said Brian Chou, OD, a partner at Carmel Mountain Vision Care — a group optometric practice in San Diego.

But Larry K. Wan, OD, of Family EyeCare Center in Campbell, Calif., disagrees.

“The TruEyes silicone hydrogel contact lens provides five times more oxygen to the eye than other one-day, single-use lenses, and has the highest level of UV protection,” Wan told Contact Lens Headlines. “It may be the most comfortable and trouble-free lens option available.”

But Chou said he is inclined to wait and see if the new silicone hydrogel daily genuinely is cost effective for his patients.

“If there are two lenses that perform equivalently well but one lens is half the cost, I will prescribe the lower cost lens to serve the patient’s best interests,” Chou said.

Depending on the geographic market, Wan said TruEyes contact lenses cost about $15 to $17 more per 90-lens box than other products on the market. He said this expenditure amounts to about $1.80 per day for wearers.

“This is about the same as what a pair of high-quality eyeglasses would cost you,” Wan said. “For many patients, this is a tremendous value for the quality.”

A study published in the July issue of Optometry & Vision Science says small numbers of microorganisms were found in contact lens cases when they were cleaned and then left in a face up position.

Contamination was even more likely in humid environments when cases were left face up after cleaning.

“On the basis of this limited study, we would recommend contact lens cases be air dried face down,” researchers said.

Based on these recent findings about care of contact lens cases, Contact Lens Headlines editorial advisor Edward Bennett, OD, MSEd, also suggests that wearers can be extra safe if they replace lens cases frequently — as often as monthly and at least every three months.

Bennett is executive director of the Gas Permeable (GP) Lens Institute (Contact Lens Manufacturers Association). He also is co-chief of the Contact Lens Service at the University of Missouri - St. Louis College of Optometry, where he is an associate professor.

Bennett offered two other crucial tips about good hygiene and contact lens cases:

• Use fresh disinfecting solution daily to minimize contamination of the soaking solution.

• Use only contact lens care products (for cases and contacts) recommended by your eye care practitioner.

“The importance of the lens case in successful, healthy contact lens wear cannot be overemphasized,” Bennett said. “Bacteria and other microorganisms in a nutrient-deprived environment, such as a contact lens case, can secrete a kind of slime which can protect the bacteria against certain preservatives.”

This custom toric contact lens line is from Alden Optical.

If you don’t want to change what has worked so well for you, you might consider a new program by Alden Optical that provides custom-made contact lenses as duplicates for your preferred brand.

Alden Optical President Tom Shone told Contact Lens Headlines that the cost may be about the same in certain cases as what you paid when your favorite contact lenses were available commercially.

Even when custom contact lenses are more expensive, certain contact lens wearers may have special needs that can be met only by a discontinued brand.

“Some brands have unique characteristics such as the size or corrective powers, or they are made from unique materials,” Shone said.

He said one example is the discontinued Hydron Mini lens from CooperVision, which has a distinct design including an unusually small size that could benefit certain wearers.

These types of custom-made contact lenses are available through the Alden, N.Y. company’s recently announced Phoenix program, which specializes in duplicating certain brands of discontinued contact lenses.

Any eye care practitioner should be able to assist patients with ordering these types of custom-made lenses, Shone said.

He said potential wearers also can contact the company at info@aldenoptical.com for recommendations of eye care providers who can assist them with special orders in their geographic area.

Not surprising, the doe-eyed look she has in the video has inspired a fad among many teenage girls and young women: wearing special color contacts that mimic the anime-style look. These so-called “circle” contacts have a darkly tinted zone that makes the wearer’s pupil look much larger than normal.

The problem is that circle contact lenses are being sold illegally via the Internet without a contact lens prescription, which eye doctors say could cause serious eye problems ranging from minor eye discomfort to serious eye infections, including potentially blinding infections such as Acanthamoeba keratitis. This especially is true when contact lenses are not properly cleaned and disinfected after each use and/or are shared among friends.

Today, the American Academy of Optometry (AAO) and American Optometric Association (AOA) issued a joint statement titled, “Concern Regarding Cosmetic ‘Circle’ Contact Lenses.”

In the document, the organizations point out that all contact lenses, whether they correct vision or are used simply for cosmetic purposes, are classified as medical devices by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and cannot be obtained legally in the United States without a prescription, which requires a contact lens fitting by a licensed eye care practitioner.

The joint statement also says studies show individuals who purchase contact lenses via the Internet or mail order have a four times greater risk of eye infections than those who purchase their lenses from an eye care professional.

The AAO and AOA also warn of the dangers of sharing or swapping contact lenses with friends and advise consumers desiring cosmetic contact lenses to alter or enhance their appearance to do so only after consultation with their eye care provider.

The AAO/AOA joint statement follows a similar warning about circle contacts issued earlier this month by the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

A consensus opinion doesn’t seem to exist among optometrists, as evidenced by a point-counterpoint discussion of the topic published in the June 2010 issue of Contact Lens Spectrum.

Colleen M. Riley, OD, vice president of professional development at Vistakon / Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, says disposable contact lenses should be replaced every two weeks for better vision, less contact lens discomfort and fewer complications.

Offering a different opinion, Peter D. Bergenske, OD, director of professional support at Ciba Vision North America, says popular and highly oxygen-permeable silicone hydrogel contact lenses make monthly replacement sufficient, and replacing contacts on a monthly basis is easier for contact lens wearers to remember than a two-week replacement schedule.

Other eye doctors prefer weekly replacement of disposable contacts. Weekly replacement is more likely to keep the lenses clear and comfortable, and a one-week replacement schedule is very easy for lens wearers to remember and comply with, they say.

Still other eye care practitioners say daily disposable contact lenses are the best choice. With daily disposables, there is no need to remember when to replace your contacts since they are discarded after a single use. Though daily disposable contacts may be the most costly option, many contact lens wearers prefer the convenience of not having to clean and disinfect their contacts at the end of the day, and there is no need to purchase lens care products.

So which contact lens replacement schedule is best for you? That may depend on your eyes as much as your personal preferences.

To determine the type of disposable contacts and the lens replacement schedule that are best for your needs, budget and lifestyle, it’s wise to discuss all options with your optometrist or ophthalmologist.

Like high-index eyeglass lenses, high-index gas permeable contacts bend (refract) light more efficiently, so less lens material is needed for a given prescription power.

In the June 2010 issue of Contact Lens Spectrum, Ronald K. Watanabe, OD, associate professor of optometry at New England College of Optometry, outlines the benefits of high-index GP contacts. These include:

• Because high-index lenses are thinner than regular GP lenses, they fit more easily under the upper eyelid, which can improve comfort, especially in cases of high myopia.

• High-index GP lenses also are lighter, which can improve the upper eyelid’s ability to hold them properly in place on the eye.

• High-index materials also can increase the effective “add” power of aspheric GP multifocal contacts, potentially providing a better correction of presbyopia for contact lens wearers over age 40.

On the downside, high-index gas permeable contacts may not stay as moist as conventional GP lenses, possibly making them less comfortable for someone with dry eyes.

Also, high-index lenses have a lower oxygen permeability than some other GP lenses, which may be a problem for wearers whose corneas cannot tolerate a reduced oxygen supply, according to Dr. Watanabe.

These are some of the findings of a new study conducted by researchers at the Centre for Contact Lens Research (CCLR) at the University of Waterloo (Ontario, Canada).

A total of 158 U.S. eye care practitioners assisted in the study by distributing surveys to their contact lens patients. A total of 1,654 of the returned patient surveys were eligible for analysis.

The mean age of contact lens wearers in the study was 34 years (range: 14 to 79 years). The majority wore their lenses on a daily wear basis, but 12 percent reported wearing extended wear contact lenses on a continuous basis.

Among the results of the study:

• 16 percent of participants wore daily disposable contacts; 45 percent wore 2-week replacement silicone hydrogel contact lenses; 39 percent wore 1-month replacement silicone hydrogel lenses.

• 20 percent of participants were unsure of the type of contact lenses they were wearing.

• 52 percent of those wearing 2-week disposable contact lenses, 28 percent of those wearing 1-month replacement lenses and 12 percent of those wearing daily disposable lenses did not replace their contacts on a timely basis.

• The overall rate of patient noncompliance with the replacement frequency recommended by their eye doctor was 38 percent.

• When asked about their lens care regimen, 40 percent could not recall or did not know the name of their contact lens care products.

Generally, contact lens cases should be replaced at least every 3 months, but only 50 percent of the study participants reported doing so. A total of 20 percent reported replacing their case every 6 months, 16 percent said they replaced their case annually and 14 precent aid they had never replaced their lens storage case.

The researchers also found that end-of-day contact lens discomfort was reported by a higher proportion of contact lens wearers (51 percent) who failed to replace their contact lenses on time.

A full report of the study appears in the June 2010 issue of Contact Lens Spectrum.