Lenses for allergy sufferers
Doctors presented antiallergic contact lenses
Sergey Vasiliev, Naked Science
Spring is the season of allergy outbreaks. Fortunately, today there are a lot of drugs that can, if not completely defeat, then significantly weaken its symptoms. Antihistamines, such as ketotifen, are effective, relieving many "spring" allergy sufferers from itching and watery eyes. To do this, it is available in the form of eye drops – however, doctors from Johnson & Johnson Vision Care have developed a new method of delivering such drugs: using contact lenses. Brian Pall and his colleagues talk about this in an article published in the journal Cornea (Management of Ocular Allergy Itch With an Antihistamine-Releasing Contact Lens).
Ketotifen-soaked contact lenses were tested on volunteers. In total, 244 people wearing lenses and suffering from allergies to pollen, cat hair, etc. were selected for this purpose. They were randomly divided into three groups: participants of the first received contact lenses with ketotifen, participants of the second received lenses with placebo, and the third received a test lens for one eye and a placebo for the other.
Immediately after 15 minutes of wearing, they were exposed to allergens and asked to rate eye irritation on a scale from zero to four. The new lenses proved to be effective: the people who used them gave an average score of 0.52, while those who received a placebo – 1.77. Repeating the allergen exposure 12 hours later, the scientists got close figures: 0.77 and 1.89, respectively.
It is hardly to be expected that soon "anti-allergic" contact lenses will be on sale. Firstly, they will not help to stop other symptoms of the disease, such as cough and heavy breathing, requiring the parallel use of conventional drugs. Secondly, they are disposable and noticeably more expensive than conventional lenses. However, Johnson & Johnson is considering the new technology from all sides. Perhaps it will be used in other areas of medicine that require stable and accurate delivery of medicines directly into the eye.
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