Contact Lens News Shines at AOA

Optometric Management, Jul 2006

INNOVATION LEADS THE WAY

The 109th annual American Academy of Optometry Congress recently played host to a number of contact lens-related announcements, a sampling of which are summarized below.

The Vistakon Acuvue Advance with Hydraclear, Acuvue Advance for Astigmatism and Acuvue Oasys with Hydraclear Plus brands were the first to receive a Seal of Acceptance for ultraviolet absorbing contact lenses from the AOA's Commission on Ophthalmic Standards.

The Acuvue lenses met standards for Class 1 UV-blockers: They absorb a minimum of 90% of UVA and at least 99% of UVB radiation.

Vistakon also announced "Click-to-be-Contacted," a program that allows ECPs to receive contact information from consumers who respond to the free trial certificate offer found at www.acuvue.com. For more information or to register, visit www.ecp.acuvue.com.

Bausch & Lomb received FDA approval to add a cold oxygen plasma treatment to the manufacturing process of gas permeable (GP) contact lenses made with Boston materials. The treatment bombards the lens surface with ions in a vacuum. The process may reduce the lens hydration time by reducing the wetting angle and improving comfort without changing the finished lens properties.

CIBA Vision announced that each bottle of its AQuify multipurpose contact lens solution will include a new Pro-Guard contact lens case. The innovative case is infused with silver ions to kill bacteria and help minimize contamination on the lens surface. The case is cleared by the FDA and is available only with AQuify MPS. CIBA notes that contamination of lens cases, which occurs in up to 80% of contact lens wearers, has been associated with eye infections.

CIBA also launched www.clearcaresolution.com, an interactive Web site designed to demonstrate the benefits of Clear Care, a one-bottle lens care system.

Optical Connection and WaveFront Sciences announced that the COAS Precision Aberrometer will be certified for use in making Definition WaveTouch contact lenses. The wavefront-guided soft contact lenses will be manufactured based on individual aberrometry readings, which will correct higher order aberrations. Additionally, Optical Connection was the topic of a recent "Health Journal Television" show hosted by Gen. Alexander Haig. The show airs on Bravo, MSNBC and DirecTV.