Is a Sustained Medication Delivery System on the Horizon?

One of the biggest downfalls when it comes to topical ocular medications for the treatment of eye diseases is patient compliance. Patients often forget to put their drops in as directed, think they are getting the drops instilled into the eyes (but actually do not), and some patients just have physical difficulty with bottles. Much research is going into other methods of medication instillation and sustained release of meds, such as contact lenses, implants, injections, etc.

This article describes a study in which a latanoprost-polymer film was incorporated into a hydrogel lens to create latanoprost-eluting contact lenses. The effects of these lenses were then studied and compared to standard treatment using traditional drops. 

Results showed that the contact lenses were at least as effective as the use of daily latanoprost ophthalmic solution, and at some time points showed a statistically significant improvement in reduction. Additionally, the latanoprost-eluting contact lenses provided relatively steady IOP reduction with less variation in IOP during diurnal measurements. These results appear very promising for the future of medication delivery in the eye care industry! 

Lowering a patient’s intraocular pressure (IOP) is critical for glaucoma management—but it’s also one of the most challenging aspects of a patient’s care. Topical glaucoma medications, the go-to treatment option for most practitioners, come with a host of potential issues, the biggest being patient noncompliance, due to physical difficulty with drop administration, financial constraints and side effects such as burning and hyperemia. 

Continue Reading on the Review of Contact Lenses.

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