“Drug-laden” lenses can replace eye drops

At the University of Florida, some researchers have developed “drug-laden” lenses to deliver medication at precise intervals.

The soft contact lenses were developed for people suffering from glaucoma or other eye disorders, and use tiny drug-filled “nanoparticles” capable of releasing medication slowly and steadily into the eye. The particles are actually mixed with the material used to make contact lenses before they are manufactured, and do not interfere with normal vision. These lenses would be a lot more efficient than regular eye drops, which tend to release most of their medication into the bloodstream and not the actual eye where it is most needed.