Scientists have developed a contact lens that releases anesthesia to the eye for post-surgery pain relief. The contacts can be particularly effective for patients who undergo PRK (photorefractive keratectomy), in which the healing process can take days, weeks or even months.

Currently, medicated eye drops are used after laser eye surgery, and patients typically use the drops every few hours for several days. Compared to the LASIK procedure, PRK has a longer period of pain following surgery, and PRK patients receive a “bandage” contact lens to help the eye heal.

Lead by Anuj Chauhan, PhD, from the University of Florida, a team of scientists found that anesthesia can continually release from the lens for a full day and up to seven days when vitamin E is added to the lens. Without vitamin E, the lens can release anesthesia for only less than two hours.

The scientists stated that the vitamin E loaded silicone contact lens could act as a bandage contact lens as well as deliver pain medication following laser eye surgery.

The study was reported in the American Chemical Society’s journal Langmuir.

Sometimes the things you put on your hair, face and eyelids to look more attractive can make your contact lenses look horrible.

This is particularly the case with eyeliner and eye makeup. If either of these substances makes its way into your tear film, it can easily adhere to your contact lenses, causing discomfort, vision problems and the potential for eye infections.

It doesn’t matter if you wear soft (including silicone hydrogel) contacts or rigid gas permeable (GP) lenses; once makeup adheres to the contact lens surface, it’s often there for good and can’t be removed with contact lens solutions.

Also, debris from cosmetics floating in the tear film can change appearance when it adheres to the contact lens surface. In the December 2011 issue of Contact Lens Spectrum, John Mark Jackson, OD, associate professor at Southern College of Optometry, reports a case where a lens deposit attributed to eyeliner formed a white (not black) opaque deposit on the surface of a soft contact lens, affecting the wearer’s vision.

Dr. Jackson offers the following advice on how to keep your contact lenses clean and free of problems caused by cosmetics-related lens deposits:

• Always apply your contact lenses before applying cosmetics.
• Avoid oil-based makeup and removers.
• Close your eyes tightly when using hairspray.
• Replace your cosmetics frequently, especially mascara and eyeliner, to avoid infection.

If you have any questions about lens care — especially if you have problems with your lenses getting dirty quickly — see your eye care practitioner for advice.

Another option for avoiding contact lens deposits is to switch to daily disposable lenses that you discard after each use.

Key wrongdoings included sleeping while wearing contact lenses and using lenses longer than recommended. Interestingly, the majority of respondents demonstrated awareness of the risks associated with these behaviors.

Showering and swimming while wearing contacts were also popular malpractices. Only 2 out of 3 respondents reported awareness of potential contact lens complications, such as Acanthamoeba keratitis, from tap water and wearing lenses during water sports. Even less respondencts were aware of the risks from showering with lenses.

Although most patients knew of the importance of hand washing before lens handling, about 90 percent were not aware of the importance of disposing used contact lens solution before adding fresh solution. In addition, nearly half of the respondents admitted to not replacing their lens case as recommended, or only doing so when they receive a new one from their eye doctor.

The researchers concluded that increased patient education could improve compliance in the short term, but new approaches may be needed for maximal compliance in the long term.

The study was reported in the December issue of Optometry and Vision Science.

There were no observed adverse effects on the rabbits, and the researchers attest the device could be worn by people. Currently the prototype only generates one pixel of information, but they predict that years from now the device could display short emails and other messages in front of the wearer’s eyes.

The researchers built the bionic lenses with light-emitting diodes (LED) and metal circuits about one-thousandth the size of a human hair. An external source transmitted power to an antenna built into the device. The energy then transferred to a transparent sapphire chip with a single blue LED.

Although the wireless transmission was successful, the prototype had to be centimeters away from the power source. The researchers cited the wireless connection as a challenge, as well as having all components fit into the volume of a contact lens.

In a paper published in the Nov. 22 journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, the researchers stated that successfully deployment could “fundamentally change the nature of interaction between humans and visual information.”

Contact lens manufacturer Menicon is introducing a new lens that’s packaged in a revolutionary, wafer-thin flat pack.

The lens, dubbed “Magic,” debuts this week at the company’s concept store in Tokyo, and nationwide marketing in Japan will start in 2012.

The flat pack is just 12.5 percent of the thickness of a conventional contact lens flat pack, and is the world’s flattest and most compact lens pack, says the company. The lens is sandwiched between two foil sheets, as opposed to the typical plastic container in which lenses float loosely.

Menicon touts the benefits of carrying convenience — the pack can even go in a wallet — as well as minimal storage area and even hygiene, because only the outer surface of the lens need be touched to remove it from the pack.

Magic also uses a new lens material that offers superior water retention for high wettability and all-day comfort, says the company.

The company has not provided information on when the lens might be available outside its home market of Japan, although Menicon does business in more than 40 countries, including the United States.

See more of the lens and innovative packaging in this YouTube video.

The NovaKone contact lens has a posterior design that neutralizes irregular astigmatism, and a front surface design to correct for regular astigmatism. The lens features Dual Elliptical Stabilization for rotational stability on the cornea.

Alden Optical is a manufacturer of custom and specialty soft and GP contact lenses.

Bausch + Lomb recently launched a new toric contact lens called PureVision2 for Astigmatism with High Definition (HD) Optics.

The lens features HD Optics to provide crisp vision for patients with astigmatism. The company states that the lens reduces spherical aberration to help avoid halos and glare in low lighting.

With a large lens diameter of 14.5 mm and a stabilization system called Auto Align Design, the lens stays centered on the eye for clear vision and comfort.

Also for increased comfort, the PureVision2 HD for Astigmatism lens is made with a thin lens design and is highly oxygen-transmissible.

With Halloween fast-approaching, the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), the Contact Lens Association of Ophthalmologists and other organizations are warning the public about the risks associated with improper use of special effect contact lenses.

Unlike popular belief, costume contacts require a contact lens prescription by law or there can be sight-threatening consequences.

The AAO explained that there is no contact lens that is “one-size-fits-all.” Any contact lens that is not fitted correctly can scratch the eye or cause eye disorders and eye infections that can result in blindness. For these reasons, a federal law was passed in 2005 that classifies all contact lenses as medical devices.

Consumers are encouraged to purchase theatrical contacts only from an eye doctor or an authorized seller that asks for a prescription. Costume contacts cannot be purchased legally in the United States without a contact lens prescription.

Like any other contact lens, special effect contact lenses need to be cleaned and disinfected to prevent eye infections. An eye care professional can provide proper lens care instructions for theatrical contacts.

Younger generations were found to follow contact lens wear and care instructions most diligently. Forty three percent of respondents from Generation Y replace their daily disposable contact lenses as directed, compared to 33 percent of baby boomers.

Generation Y respondents were also the most likely to store and replace their contact lens case as directed. Nearly half reported replacing their lens case every one to three months, while only 28 percent of baby boomers reported doing so.

According to the AOA, all age groups can improve their habits for cleaning contact lenses. Nearly one third of all respondents use rewetting drops to clean or disinfect lenses. Nineteen percent of Generation X, 22 percent of Generation Y and 8 percent of baby boomers use water to soak or clean their lenses.

However, the AOA stated that water and rewetting drops do not disinfect contact lenses, and water can potentially contaminate lenses. It’s important to clean and rinse lenses properly each day to remove films and deposits, as well as disinfect lenses.

Menicon America has released a new lens care system for cleaning and disinfecting gas permeable contact lenses. The system contains Menicon Unique pH, Menicon Progent and Menicon Rewetting Drops; and it is available for purchase online at the newly launched Menicon WebStore.

In conjunction with the launch, Menicon Progent now has FDA-approval for in-home use. Previously only available for office use, the solution is recommended for biweekly cleaning. Menicon Progent cleans gas permeable (GP) lenses and removes protein deposits after 30 minutes without manual rubbing.

Menicon Unique pH (formerly Alcon Unique pH) is a multipurpose solution with antimicrobial agents to disinfect GP lenses. The solution conditions lenses to adjust to the natural pH of tears for improved wettability and comfort.

Menicon Rewetting Drops can be used on gas permeable contacts prior to insertion or applied directly on the eye during lens wear to moisten GP lenses and enhance wearing comfort.

To learn more, visit meniconamerica.com.