Contact solution recall curbs eye infection outbreak

Bausch & Lomb Inc.'s global recall of a the popular ReNu with MoistureLoc lens solution in May appears to have curbed the spread of a serious eye infection, but U.S. scientists still do not know what caused the outbreak, according to a study released on Tuesday.

Researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found no infection within the Bausch & Lomb contact lens solution but do not believe that merely improper lens hygiene practices by consumers are enough to explain the outbreak the fusarium keratitis infection, which in some cases caused sever corneal damage requiring a cornea transplant.

The rare but potentially blinding eye infection prompted Bausch & Lomb to cease shipments of its ReNu with MoistureLoc lens solution to U.S. retailers in April. Bausch then issued a global recall of the solution in May and earlier this month slashed its 2006 earnings forecast.

Various groups of infection were first reported in Singapore and Hong Kong earlier this year and consequently the product was pulled from those markets in February.

Park and colleagues at the CDC in Atlanta conducted a study to determine the specific activities, hygiene practices and products associated with the infection, which appeared in the August 23-30 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

As of June 30, the researchers had identified 164 confirmed cases of the fungal infection fusarium keratitis. Of those cases, 94 percent, or 154 patients, wore soft contact lenses.

The infected patients came from 33 states and one U.S. territory and about 34 percent of them required a corneal transplant.

According to the study, the infected contact lens wearers were 20 times more likely to have used Bausch & Lomb's ReNu with MoistureLoc lens solution than another solution.

The company now faces a number of lawsuits because of the infection. Besides the loss of a $100 million-a-year product, analysts have estimated Bausch & Lomb faces $500 million to $1 billion in potential liability lawsuits as a result of the infection.

Bausch & Lomb has theorized that ingredients unique to the MoistureLoc solution in particular, could have formed a thin film on contact lens cases and the tip of bottles, rendering the solution less effective. CDC researchers said that theory was possible but definitely needed more study.

Because of the legal troubles, shares of Bausch & Lomb have fallen more than 31 percent since the beginning of the year.

While some infected contact lens wearers reported having used another Bausch product, ReNu MultiPlus, Park said the infection rate was not statistically significant.

"We think the report confirms that Bausch & Lomb took the right action in the interests of consumer health and safety by recalling the MoistureLoc product and that Bausch & Lomb can continue to recommend its ReNu MultiPlus solution with confidence," the company said in a recent statement.

The American Optometric Association said the CDC findings support optometrists' advice to patients that proper contact lens hygiene, compliance and discontinuing ReNu with MoistureLoc will help prevent serious infections.

Park said the CDC is continuing to manage reports of the infection in the United States and said the threat to the nation's 34 million contact lens wearers is very small.

The study, which looked at samples of the solution from the factory, warehouse, returned bottles and other sources, concluded that the infection was not present in the solution, but most likely came from external sources, such as the users' homes.

Researchers have said that the fungus that causes the infection is common to tropical regions but also can be found in sink drains.

However, the study reiterates lax hygiene alone could not have caused the fungal outbreak.