The US Food and Drug Administration is alerting health care professionals and their patients who wear soft contact lenses about a voluntary recall of complete MoisturePlus Multi Purpose solution manufactured by Advanced Medical Optics of Santa Ana, California.
The company is taking this action as a precaution because of reports of a rare, but serious, eye infection, Acanthamoeba keratitis, caused by a parasite. The link between the solution and the infection was identified as a result of an investigation by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Consumers who wear soft contact lenses should stop using the solution, discard all partially-used or unopened bottles and replace their lenses and storage container.
"We believe the company acted responsibly in taking this voluntary action and support their decision to be proactive in the interest of public health," said Daniel Schultz, M.D., director of FDA's Centre for Devices and Radiological Health. "FDA and CDC are working closely with the company to collect additional information and we will continue to alert consumers and advise them as more information becomes available."
Acanthamoeba keratitis may lead to vision loss with some patients requiring a corneal transplant. The infection primarily affects otherwise healthy people who wear contact lenses.
Consumers should ask their doctor about choosing an appropriate alternative cleaning/disinfecting product and seek immediate treatment if they have symptoms of eye infection as early diagnosis is important for effective treatment. The symptoms of Acanthamoeba keratitis can be very similar to those of other more common eye infections and may include eye pain or redness, blurred vision, light sensitivity, sensation of something in the eye or excessive tearing but Acanthamoeba is more difficult to treat.
It is estimated that Acanthamoeba keratitis infections occur in approximately two out of every one million contact lens users in the United States each year. However, in a multi-state investigation to evaluate a recent increase in Acanthamoeba keratitis cases, CDC determined that the risk of developing AK was at least seven times greater for those consumers who used complete MoisturePlus solution versus those who did not. "The ongoing CDC investigation is a collaborative effort," said Michael Beach, MD, a division of parasitic diseases team leader with CDC. "We are working with FDA, state, territory, university, and clinical partners in an effort to further understand whether usage or contamination of this solution led to these Acanthamoeba infections."