Electronic Contact Lens for Therapeutic Drug Delivery

Incorporates an Electronic Circuit for Delivery of Ocular Medications to the Posterior Eye

This electronic contact lens uses iontophoresis, a process incorporating electronic stimulation, to deliver ophthalmic drugs to the eye’s posterior segment, for back-of-eye disease treatment. Macular degeneration and other forms of posterior eye disease affect over 8.5 million Americans. These retinal-area diseases can result in blindness and retinal detachment if left untreated. Treatment typically consists of eye drops for aqueous medication delivery to the eye’s vitreous tissues. However, ophthalmic drops fail to effectively deliver medication to the back of the eye, making this therapy unable to treat retinal and macular disorders. Ocular implants and intravitreal injections allow prolonged drug delivery to the eye’s posterior. However, patients often find these non-aqueous therapies uncomfortable for prolonged wear and direct eye injection can create insertion complications, patient discomfort and low efficacy. Other available treatments incorporating iontophoresis use reservoirs and electrodes placed onto the forehead or ear, making a bulky, uncomfortable device and a need for large voltage to operate.

Researchers at the University of Florida have developed a self-contained electronic contact lens incorporating the drug treatment, a power supply and built-in electrodes for iontophoretically delivering the therapeutic to the back of the eye with minimal patient discomfort.

Application

Soft contact lens containing electrodes, a power supply and ophthalmic drugs to treat posterior eye disease

Advantages

• Contains both an anode and cathode, creating an electronic gradient for non-invasive medication transport to the back of the eye
• Generates a weak electric field, avoiding interference with other electronic medical devices
• Rests on the surface of the eye with minimal discomfort, allowing for longer use than available therapies

Technology

A layer of positively charged ocular medication located above the eye’s anterior chamber rests adjacent to electrodes on the contact’s surface. When worn on the surface of the eye, a paired anode and cathode included inside the contact lens generates an electrochemical gradient when the contact’s power source activates. The resulting voltage gradient extends across the eye’s anterior vitreous tissues. The continuous current from each end of the anterior eye drives the migration of positively charged drug particles from the cathodic electrode to the anodic electrode. This electric field allows the medication to penetrate the epithelial cell layer and travel toward the back of the eye while evenly distributing medication throughout tissues in the posterior eye.