Poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels as soft contact lens material

Abstract

A new type of soft contact lens was developed from the poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogel prepared by a low temperature crystallization technique using a water-dimethyl sulfoxide mixed solvent. The PVA contact lens materials had a water content of 78% and a tensile strength of 50 kg/cm2, five times as strong as that of commercial poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) soft contact lens. The amount of proteins adsorbed to the PVA soft hydrogel material was half to one thirtieth of that of conventional soft contact lenses. Histological and scanning electron microscopic observation of rabbit eyes which had worn the PVA soft contact lens for 12 weeks showed no difference in corneal epithelium and cell arrangement in the corneal epithelium from the non-wearing eyes.

Study on Properties of Poly(vinyl alcohol)/Polyacrylonitrile Blend Film

“…PVA as excellent biomaterials is capable of simulating natural tissues, contact lenses, the lining for artificial organs, and drug delivery, etc [5][6][7][8] . Although PVA holds good mechanical properties in the dry state, its high hydrophilicity limits its applications [9] .…”

Influence of processing parameters on the macroscopic mechanical behavior of PVA hydrogels

“…Its stiffness, which can easily be controlled by adjusting its chemical composition, can compare well to the one of soft tissues. PVA is used in drug delivery systems [4], contact lenses [5], and substitutes tendons [6], ligaments [7], cartilage [8], and more.…”

Synthesis and swelling properties of a poly(vinyl alcohol)-based superabsorbing hydrogel

“…Because of desirable characteristics, PVA hydrogels have been used in various pharmaceutical and biomedical applications [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21] . However, PVA must be cross-linked in order to that can be useful for a wide range of applications.…”