Contact Lenses: Promising Devices for Ocular Drug Delivery

Abstract

In the ocular pharmacology market, there is a noteworthy unmet demand for more efficacious delivery of ocular therapeutics. Contact lenses are emerging as an alternative ophthalmic drug delivery system to resolve the drawbacks of the conventional topical application methods. Thus, contact lenses drug delivery systems have been developed to provide an increased residence time of the drug at the surface of the eye leading to enhanced bioavailability and more convenient and efficacious therapy. Several research groups have already explored the feasibility and potential of contact lenses loading conventional drugs used to treat anterior eye disorders. Drug incorporation to the lens body is achieved with techniques, like simple soaking, inclusion of drug-loaded colloidal nanoparticles, or molecular imprinting. Regardless of the technique used, key properties of the contact lens, such as transparency and oxygen permeability, should be preserved. In this article, we reviewed the different techniques used for drug delivery through contact lenses, analyzing their advantages and disadvantages, and focused on articles describing contact lens-based ophthalmic drug delivery systems with significant potential to use in ocular therapeutics.

A Novel Peptide Hydrogel for an Antimicrobial Bandage Contact Lens

“…This characteristic is important for both oxygen permeability and comfort of the lens to the wearer. [ 23 ] The addition of penicillin G and free pεK to Su 60 14 did not infl uence the ultimate tensile strength (Figure 1 d) of the gels, but the addition of free pεK did signifi cantly increase the elastic modulus (Figure 1 e) and resulted in a greater water content and lower refractive index than the penicillin G modifi ed hydrogel (Figure 1 f). The added pεK to hydrogel Su PεK results in an increase of hydrophilic amino groups and is directly associated with the increased water absorption capacity of the hydrogel.…”

Ocular Drug Delivery Role of Contact Lenses

“…65 Many researchers reported the ability of a SCL to deliver antibiotics into the cornea and/ or aqueous humor. 19,66 The newer SCLs released antibiotics like Gatifloxacin and Moxifloxacin over several days, and showed improved penetration into the eye.…”

Contact lenses: new devices for nucleotide delivery in ocular pathologies

“…Nevertheless, increased tear secretion can also be obtained by means of compounds such as ATP, UTP, 2-thioUTP and the dinucleotide Ap 4 A. For all these substances the main problem is that when they are topically applied on the ocular surface they are quickly drained by the canaliculi, limiting their presence on the ocular surface for a maximum of 5 min [5]. This limits the time they have to produce a sustained action.…”