A team of researchers led by the Johns Hopkins Wilmer Eye Institute have determined that the corneal infection rate associated with the use of 30-day -extended-wear contact lenses made from silicone hydrogel is comparable to that previously reported for older lens types worn for fewer consecutive 24-hour periods.

The study, published in the Dec. 1 issue of Ophthalmology, recruited 6,245 patients, 64 percent of them women with an average age of 35, from 131 practices in North America between August 2002 and July 2003. All participants were prescribed and fitted with CIBA Vision NIGHT & DAY silicone hydrogel soft contact lenses, to be worn for 30 consecutive 24-hour periods. Participants completed a baseline survey to collect information and potential risk factors for infections. At three and 12 months after enrollment, information regarding contact lens wearing schedules, discontinuation of lens wear and the occurrence of red and painful eye infection requiring medical attention was obtained.

Eighty percent of the participants in the study completed 12 months of lens wear and wore their lenses for three or more weeks continuously. The overall annual rate of evident corneal infection was 18 per 10,000. There were two cases of corneal infection with partial loss of vision and an additional eight cases without vision loss. The rate of infection was lower for users wearing the lenses for three or more weeks than for those wearing the contact lenses for less than three-week continuous periods.

"The incidence of vision loss as a result of corneal infections among users of the silicone hydrogel contact lens was low," said Oliver Schein, M.D., M.P.H. lead investigator of the study and the Burton E. Grossman Professor of Ophthalmology at the Johns Hopkins Wilmer Eye Institute. "The overall rate for corneal infection with the wearing schedule of the silicone hydrogel soft contact lenses for up to 30 nights was similar to that reported for conve
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Contact: John Lazarou
jlazaro1@jhmi.edu
410-502-8902
Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions
1-Dec-2005

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