Glaucoma theranostics

Glaucoma is a disease associated with increased intraocular pressure, which leads to the death of nerve fibers in the optic nerve. If left untreated, glaucoma leads to partial or complete blindness. This disease is asymptomatic and is detected either by accident or with the appearance of visual disturbances that are irreversible.

As part of a new study, a group of researchers from the National Sun Yat-sen University (Taiwan) has developed a contact lens capable of continuously monitoring intraocular pressure, and when certain thresholds are exceeded, an anti-glaucoma drug is automatically injected through the cornea directly into the anterior chamber of the eye, providing rapid pressure reduction and preventing damage to the optic nerve.

The smart lens consists of two layers with an air gap between them, which is part of an electronic system – the pressure inside the eye compresses the air pocket of the lens, signaling to the components about the need to inject brimonidine, which is pushed by a small electrical pulse from the bottom of the lens through the cornea into the eye. The outer layer of the contact lens is made of six copper plates that serve as activators and are arranged in a ring around the central zone so as not to interfere with vision. The design includes small modules with brimonidine on the periphery.

The researchers note that the contact lens is minimally invasive, has no wires or power supplies and gives the patient's eye color a golden hue. It can be paired with a smartphone app to give patients information about changes in intraocular pressure. The lens can be used to treat other eye diseases.

The researchers effectively tested their development on rabbits and pigs.

Article C.Yang et al. Intelligent wireless theranostic contact lens for electrical sensing and regulation of intraocular pressure is published in the journal Nature Communications.

Aminat Adzhieva, portal "Eternal Youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru .