GLG News by Dr. Darcy Ryan OD, Optometrist
Analyses are solely the work of the authors and have not been edited or endorsed by GLG.
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At What Age Should Contact Lenses Be Considered for Children?
February 13, 2008
Contact lenses: A winning option for you and young patients | ecp.acuvue.com
A recent study showed that children aged 8-12 were just as successful as teenagers aged 13-17 in the areas of physiological adjustment and contact lens care. I find this is true in my practice as well. Not only can prescribing to this younger demographic change a child's life, it can also increase an Eye Care Practitioner's bottom line.
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November 8, 2007
Blinded by the Light? Vision Problems and Visual Discomfort Make Driving in the Dark Difficult, Uncomfortable for Most Americans | www.acuvue.com
This survey gives strong evidence to support issues that Eye Care Professionals deal with every day. Most Americans (73%) believe that vision correction would help their ability to drive at night, and yet only 27% of those drivers have sought help from an Eye Doctor. Why is there a discrepancy? Why doesn't everyone who has a vision problem get their eyes examined? Fears and misconceptions.
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November 2, 2007
Bausch & Lomb Continues To Be Served With Lawsuits As A Result of Eye Infections Caused by Renu MoisturLoc Contact Lense Solution, Some Of Which Was Manufactured In Greenville, SC Plant | charleston.injuryboard.com
Even though Bausch & Lomb appears to be getting back on its feet in the contact lens and solution market, their lawsuit woes continue to pile up. At 573 and counting, these lawsuits are expected to cost them over $1 billion.
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Menicon Releases New Silicone Hydrogel Lens (PremiO) to Contact Lens Market
October 16, 2007
A New Silicone Hydrogel Lens Comes to Market | www.clspectrum.com
The newest silicone hydrogel contact lenses introduced to the market use a siloxane-based material, and include the Ciba O2 Optix Custom, the Coopervision Biofinity, and now the Menicon PremiO. I have yet to get my hands on and prescribe any of these lenses so I don't have any first accounts of their performance. But I hope to try at least the Biofinity very soon.
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Professional Boxer's Career In Jeopardy Because of Poor Contact Lens Hygiene
September 7, 2007
Aussie Boxing Champion Hospitalized Due To Eye Infection; Doubts About Career Prospects | www.allheadlinenews.com
So how important is contact lens hygiene? Extremely. If you don't properly take care of your contact lenses, you risk vision loss. Would you change your bad habits if it were to cost you your professional career? Most sane, competent people would emphatically say 'YES!'. Unfortunately though, through ignorance or laziness, not everyone would.
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August 27, 2007
AMO Says the Fault Lies With the Consumers--Not With Complete | westpalmbeach.injuryboard.com
Similar to Bausch & Lomb's reaction to last year's ReNu with MoistureLoc's recall, AMO's CEO has blamed their consumers' poor contact lens hygiene habits for Complete MoisturePlus' recent problems with Acanthamoebic Keratitis. Is there any truth to this statement, or is he just deflecting blame away from himself?
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Some Contact Lens Patients Still Unaware of AMO's Complete MoisturePlus Recall
August 10, 2007
Health Authorities Worry Some Still Use Recalled Lens Solution | online.wsj.com
AMO issued their recall of their MoisturePlus solution in late May, but are some contact lens patients still unaware and still using this solution? The answer is YES.
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July 26, 2007
An Eye on Contact Lens Solutions | www.time.com
Contact lens patients are starting to wonder what contact lens solutions are safe anymore. After last year's ReNu with MoisturLoc (Bausch & Lomb) worldwide recall due to a fungal infection; and now, Complete MoisturePlus (Advanced Medical Optics) has been recalled worldwide due to an increased risk of a parasitic infection. What contact lens solutions are safe? Are there contacts available that don't need to be soaked in a contact lens solution?
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Vistakon/Johnson & Johnson Successfully Sues Ciba for Misrepresenting Consumer Opinion
April 18, 2007
Jury finds CIBA Vision falsely advertised O2OPTIX contact lenses | www.osnsupersite.com
One company suing another in the eye industry is commonplace these days. Fines are paid and life goes on. Will this lawsuit affect the sales or market share of either of these companies now, or in the long-term? Not significantly, on both accounts.
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Bausch & Lomb Acts Quickly to Recall Defective Contact Lens Solution
April 18, 2007
Bausch & Lomb Initiates Limited Voluntary Recall of Twelve Lots of ReNu MultiPlus® Solution Due to Potential for Shortened Shelf Life | www.bausch.com
So Bausch and Lomb is involved in yet another recall. At least Bausch and Lomb learned a lesson from the big MoisturLoc® mess. Pulling the affected solution lots quickly and voluntarily was the smartest thing they could have done. But I have to ask, 'Where is the quality control?'
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Effect of Accommodative IOL's on the Multifocal Contact Lens Industry
April 9, 2007
Better Vision Without Looking Your Age | www.nytimes.com
As the number of presbyopic patients, so does the demand for multifocal vision correction for these patients. Currently, the two main 'non-spectacle' options are multifocal contact lenses and accommodative IOL's. With the accommodative IOL industry growing, will it make a significant impact on the multifocal industry?
Not any time in the near future. -
Will Bifocal RGP Contact Lens Study Lead to a Decline in Soft Bifocal Contact Lens Wearers?
April 9, 2007
Bifocal RGP contact lenses produce better contrast visual acuity over soft lenses, study finds | www.osnsupersite.com
Studies come out every day about contact lenses, spectacle lenses, eye medications, etc. Most of these studies though must be ingested with a grain of salt. The bifocal RGP study that this article discusses is one of those. For many reasons, I don't think that it will have any affect at all on the soft bifocal contact lens industry.
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Cooper Continues to Have Prolems With the Launch of Its Silicone Hydrogel Lenses
January 25, 2007
Cooper gets S&P rating downgrade | www.businessweek.com
Cooper continues to lag behind the competition in the silicone hydrogel market. They still haven't had a large scale launch of its Biofinity lens and there's no date set.
Cooper's lenses have been a staple in my office since I started practicing, but as I transition my patients in the healthier silicone hydrogel lens, less and less of my patients are wearing their lenses.
They better get it together quickly. Their reputation is on the line. -
Is Bausch & Lomb Doing Enough to Warn Retailers, Patients of MoisturLoc's Potential Danger?
October 31, 2006
Recalled ReNu with MoistureLoc Still Commands 2% of the Contact Lens Solution Market | www.newsinferno.com
Months after the worldwide recall of Bausch & Lomb's ReNu with MoisturLoc, this solution still holds a 2% market share (according to a recent survey by AC Nielsen Market Data).
How is this possible? Is Bausch & Lomb not doing enough to inform doctors, retailers, and patients? No...but, are they only ones at fault? -
October 27, 2006
1-800 Contacts pitches new lens | www.sltrib.com
1-800 Contacts, through its wholly-owned Clearlab subsidiary, based in Singapore, have come up with a new packaging design. They are also looking to manufacture its own lenses, called AquaSoft Singles, to be contained in this new packaging, for sale in the U.S. within the next 2 years.
The new packaging and lenses are meant to improve "the experience of wearing contact lenses."
Are these a flash-in-the-pan gimmick, or will we all be healthier and happier because of them? -
Survey Shows Patients Are Willing To Pay More for Increased Contact Lens Comfort
October 5, 2006
Survey puts comfort ahead of CL pricing | www.opticianonline.net
This European online study reported that over 90% of patients would pay more for increased comfort and eye health.
It also showed overall a high rate of satisfaction wearers, with 61% of wearers chose their current lenses based on their eye care professional's recommendations.
So it's good to know, at least in Europe, that most patients trust their Eye Care Professionals to choose the appropriate contact lenses, even if it costs them more. -
September 6, 2006
Parker & Waichman, LLP Commends JAMA Study on ReNu with MoistureLoc | webwire.com
The CDC recently released its study on Bausch & Lomb's ReNu with MoisturLoc. It was published in the Aug. 23, 2006 Issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
The study showed that contact lens hygiene did not play a major role in causing the Fungal Keratitis.
The report also revealed a discrepancy in the timeline of when Bausch & Lomb first knew about the link of its ReNu w/ MoisturLoc to the Fusarium Keratitis, and when they reported it to any health organization. -
September 4, 2006
FTC Staff Sends Warning Letters to Marketers of Cosmetic Contact Lenses | www.ftc.gov
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently sent out 18 warning letters to online sellers of cosmetic contact lenses. These sellers claimed on their web sites that cosmetic contact lenses were non-prescription, and/or that they could be obtained without a current written prescription from a licensed eye professional. These are violations of both the Fairness to Contact Lens Consumers Act (FCLCA - 2003) and the Contact Lens Rule of 2004.
I hope these online sellers take this warning seriously, and start obeying the rules before some unknowing person wears the lenses improperly, develops a central corneal ulcer, and loses vision because of it. -
August 23, 2006
Cooper Companies initiated with "neutral weight" | www.newratings.com
We are still waiting for the elusive Coopervision silicone hydrogel (SH) lens to be launched. This report finally gives a more accurate time-line.
How long will it take Coopervision to take back a significant chunk of the already established SH market? -
New Sports Contact Lenses by Baush & Lomb and Nike Are Said to Enhance Vision and Performance
August 18, 2006
Performance contacts give players an edge | www.dailysentinel.com
Athletes (professional and amateur) have been using tinted lenses in spectacles to enhance performance for many years. B&L and Nike have now developed contacts (Nike MaxSight) to do the same thing.
Do they really work?
Are there any health issues to worry about?
Can anyone wear them?
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