{"id":467,"date":"2024-12-05T07:47:39","date_gmt":"2024-12-05T07:47:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/?p=467"},"modified":"2024-12-05T07:50:43","modified_gmt":"2024-12-05T07:50:43","slug":"breakthrough-in-ocular-medicine-3d-printed-contact-lenses-that-deliver-medication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/breakthrough-in-ocular-medicine-3d-printed-contact-lenses-that-deliver-medication\/","title":{"rendered":"Breakthrough in Ocular Medicine: 3D-Printed Contact Lenses that Deliver Medication"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>2024 has become even more revolutionary as researchers at the University of Waterloo have successfully created 3D-printed contact lenses that deliver medications directly to the eye. The research was published in the journal ACS Applied Bio Materials later this year in November 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How Does The 3D-Printed Contact Lens Work?<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-470\" style=\"width:513px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image.png 1200w, https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image-1024x683.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/image-768x512.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>The researchers developed a special hydrogel material that can be 3D-printed directly onto contact lenses. This gel has two spotlight features:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol>\n<li>It naturally attracts and holds water<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It can be cured using ultraviolet light for durability.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Throughout the gel are <em>microscopic pores<\/em>\u2014extremely small holes that serve as storage spaces for medication. When you wear these contact lenses, the medication is then gradually released into your eye. This steady release ensures that your eye receives a consistent dose of medicine, such as antibiotics like amoxicillin, throughout the day.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In laboratory testing, these lenses proved capable of maintaining stable medication delivery for over a <strong>month<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Does This Mean To Contact Lens Wearer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>This technology offers several potential benefits:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Improved Patient Compliance<\/strong>: By integrating medication delivery into contact lenses, patients may no longer need to administer eye drops multiple times a day. Not to mention, this treatment regimen is <em>pain-free<\/em>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Enhanced Treatment Efficacy<\/strong>: Continuous drug delivery ensures consistent therapeutic levels, potentially leading to better management of ocular conditions compared to the intermittent dosing of eye drops.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Broader Applications<\/strong>: The researchers aim to expand the use of these contact lenses to treat various eye ailments.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Revolutionized Ocular Medicine in 2025<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The University of Waterloo&#8217;s development of drug-delivering contact lenses may soon offer patients and healthcare providers a more efficient and reliable treatment option for various eye conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It won&#8217;t be a surprise if by 2025, 3D-printed drug-delivering contact lenses could become an integral part of ocular medicine. However, for this vision to become a reality, there will need to be continued investment in research, development, and regulatory approval, as well as further innovation in materials and manufacturing.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While we wait for further developments, see our extensive list of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/contacts\/\">top-quality contact lenses<\/a> for different types of eye problems.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>2024 has become even more revolutionary as researchers at the University of Waterloo have successfully created 3D-printed contact lenses that deliver medications directly to the eye. The research was published in the journal ACS Applied Bio Materials later this year in November 2024. How Does The 3D-Printed Contact Lens Work? The researchers developed a special [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":468,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,7],"tags":[21],"semantictags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=467"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":472,"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467\/revisions\/472"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/468"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=467"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=467"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=467"},{"taxonomy":"semantictags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.contactsamerica.com\/vision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/semantictags?post=467"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}