Contact Lens Users Beware

In an update from The Star comes this important news for those who use contact lenses.

Contact lens wearers who use 'Advanced Medical Optics' (AMO) Complete MoisturePlus solution should stop using it immediately.

AMO said it was voluntarily recalling the product from the market, although it emphasised that there was no evidence that the move was related to a product contamination issue.

"This does not impact any of AMO's other contact lens care products, including our family of hydrogen peroxide disinfecting solutions," the company said in a press release.

The recall was made based on information from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) about eye infections from Acanthamoeba, a naturally occurring water-borne organism, which can contribute to serious corneal infections.

The CDC had interviewed 46 patients who had developed Acanthamoeba keratitis since January 2005 and 39 of these patients were soft contact lens wearers and 21 reported using Complete MoisturePlus products.

Acanthamoeba keratitis can produce corneal ulceration and cause severe loss of vision and even blindness. Persistent redness and pain in the eye are among the signs and symptoms.

The CDC also estimated a risk of at least seven times greater for those who used the solution against those who did not.

“Any consumer who is concerned about an eye condition should contact their eye care practitioner in the first instance,” the company said.

For more information, the public can call the consumer information hotline at 03-7710 6311 from Monday through Friday (9am to 6pm) or log on to http://www.amo-eyecare-sea.com/

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