08 May 2006

Doubt Cast on Early Theory on Eye Infections - New York Times

Doubt Cast on Early Theory on Eye Infections
By BARNABY J. FEDER
Published: May 6, 2006

An outside researcher hired by Bausch & Lomb says that whatever is causing the recent outbreak of potentially blinding fungal eye infections among contact lens wearers, it is increasingly likely that consumers are not getting the microbes directly from the company's lens cleaning solution....
The findings suggest that there is no single source of contamination for the infections, which have been reported primarily in Singapore, Hong Kong and the United States among users of Bausch & Lomb's ReNu with MoistureLoc lens solution coming from a plant in Greenville, S.C..

Food and Drug Administration officials declined to comment yesterday on Mr. Geiser's assessment. But the agency's Web site posted an update saying that while it continued to confirm cases of Fusarium infections associated with products other than ReNu With MoistureLoc, "Our interest in the MoistureLoc product is based on the disproportionate number of cases of Fusarium keratitis associated with ReNu With MoistureLoc compared to the overall product market share."

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