June 14th 2010
It maybe National Eye Health Week but June is also the peak pollen season when contact lens wearers are forced back into their glasses due to red swollen eyes. A new type of treatment called overnight vision correction could bring relief to many thousands of sufferers and avoid them the embarrassment of returning to glasses.
The number of people affected by hayfever and shortsightedness is on the increase. Experts warn that hayfever which currently affects around 25% of the UK population could rise to almost half by 20301. Shortsighted-ness has increased 66%2 in the last 30 years and 42% of westerners need eyesight correction. With 7.5% of the adult UK population now wearing contact lenses the issue of eye problems caused by pollen allergy is a major problem in summertime.
One of the main symptoms of pollen allergy are itchy eyes that can be extremely uncomfortable and badly affect concentration at work. For contact lens wearers the problem is exacerbated because pollen can gets trapped beneath the surface of the lenses making symptoms worse. Eye drops are needed to relieve the symptoms but the ingredients in the eye drops can be absorbed by soft contact lenses and cause further irritation. "The conjunctiva of the eyes gets irritated and inflamed and allergenic eye drops are needed to reduce the symptoms. It is not recommended to patients with hayfever to wear contact lenses during that period” says allergy specialist Dr Moises Calderon MD PhD at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London.
"Having to stop wearing their contacts or wear them less frequently creates a wide range of emotions among allergy sufferers," says Mike Tringale, Director of External Affairs, AAFA, the patient advocacy organization for people with allergies "Contact lens wearers say they feel less attractive when wearing their glasses (37%), unhappy (35%), less confident without their contacts (29%), and less able to perform activities as well as when they are wearing their contact lenses (26%)."
Overnight vision correction treatment addresses all of these issues because the eyesight is corrected while sleeping. It involves wearing specially shaped contact lenses that flatten the cornea thus correcting the focus point on the back of the eye. When removed in the morning the wearer can see perfectly all day without lenses or glasses. Because the lenses are worn when there is no pollen around to aggravate the eye they are more comfortable for hayfever sufferers and it also means that eye drops can be used during the day when symptoms do occur.
" I have suffered form very bad hay fever since I was 28” says Ann Gould who opted for overnight vision correction. “I find that I don't even want to wear make up let alone contact lenses during the pollen season. In fact what I really wanted to do was sit in a dark corner with a bag over my head. Wearing lenses at night is much more comfortable and has really helped because when your eyes hurt it is hard to concentrate and my work really suffered. Now I don't have the aggravation of changing back to glasses every summer, or making sure that I always have the right had prescription sunglasses and glasses always to hand – I have much more freedom.”
“Overnight vision correction is relevant to anyone who is short-sighted, especially those who have comfort problems with their current lenses. It is a non surgical way to correct shortsightedness and a viable alternative to laser surgery.” says Shelly Bansal, specialist contact lens practitioner.
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ABOUT i-GO OVERNIGHT VISION CORRECTION
· 75% of all short-sighted people are suitable - prescriptions up to -5.00D with astigmatism less than 1.5D.
· Initial design and fitting from £200 plus £40 per month available on prescription through accredited opticians.
· Over 100,000 people worldwide already wear the lenses
· I-GO lenses are a European CE marked medical device and approved by the US Food and Drugs administration
· Interested consumers can contact i-GO on (0)844-7362579 or visit www.igolenses.com
· Watch How Overnight Vision Correction Works
AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW
· Shelly Bansal FBDO, (Hons)CL, FBCLA
REFERENCES
1. "The pattern of higher rates of hay fever with increasing urbanization” - Professor Jean Emberlin
2. Increased Prevalence of Myopia in the United States Between 1971-1972 and 1999-2004
Susan Vitale PhD, MHS Epidemiologist at the National Eye Institute Archives of Ophthalmology December 2009)
For more information contact Jennifer Golden on 07976-439060 or 0844 736 2579 Jennifer@igolenses.com
