Effect of lens care system on silicone hydrogel contact lens wettability

AbstractPurposeThe purpose was to compare the effect of the repeated usage of two care systems (one hydrogen peroxide cleaning and disinfecting system and one polyaminopropyl biguanide (PHMB) containing multi-purpose system) with silicone hydrogel contact lenses worn for three months on a daily wear modality. A specific aspect of interest was of the effect of the care systems on contact lens wettability.MethodsSeventy-four symptomatic contact lens wearers, habitually wearing either ACUVUE® OASYS® (n=37) or PureVision™ (n=37), constituted the study population. The study was a two-arm prospective, investigator-masked, bilateral study of three-month duration to evaluate the effects of CLEAR CARE® compared with renu® fresh™. The subjects were randomized to one of the two lens care systems. Contact lens wettability and surface cleanliness were assessed with the Tearscope and reported in terms of pre-lens non-invasive break-up time (PL-NIBUT) and visible deposits. Baseline assessments at enrollment were with the subjects’ own contact lenses worn for at least 6h when using their habitual PHMB-preserved care system and at the dispensing visit with new contact lenses. At the follow-up visits, the contact lenses were worn for at least 6h, and were at least 11 days old for ACUVUE® OASYS® and 25 days old for PureVision™.ResultsThe results obtained showed that: (i) with CLEAR CARE®, a significant improvement in contact lens wettability was recorded compared with the habitual care system at the three-month follow-up visit (mean median PL-NIBUT 5.8 vs. 4.0s, p