WS12-Emitting Contact Lenses

Abstract

WS12 releasing contact lenses and methods of manufacture are described. The WS12 releasing contact lenses include a polymeric lens body and WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body. The amount of WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body provides a basal tear concentration in the lens wearer of 2 μg / ml to 8 μg / ml WS12 after 30 minutes of lens wear. The WS12 releasing contact lenses can be used to increase contact lens comfort, reduce eye fatigue, reduce the sensation of dry eyes, and provide a pleasant, cooling sensation in the lens wearer without causing a stinging or burning sensation upon insertion.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The field of the invention relates to contact lenses, and in particular to contact lenses that provide a pleasant cooling sensation when worn. [Background technology]

[0002] N-(4-methoxyphenyl)-5-methyl-2-(1-methylethyl)cyclohexanecarboxamide (CAS No. 68489-09-8), known as WS12, is a synthetic menthol derivative. Therapeutic compositions containing TRPM8 receptor agonists in an amount effective to increase lacrimation have been proposed for the treatment of dry eye syndrome (Belmonte et al., U.S. Patent No. 10,028,920). WS12 can be incorporated into silicone hydrogel contact lenses and can withstand autoclave sterilization without decomposing or leaching into the packaging solution (U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 17 / 729,008). Such lenses have increased tearing, reduced the sensation of lens dryness, and improved lens wear time comfort in symptomatic contact lens wearers. However, some lens wearers experience a stinging / burning sensation when the contact lenses are first inserted into the eye. This stinging / burning sensation, even if the stinging / burning sensation is temporary, can cause wearers to stop using contact lenses altogether. It would be desirable to provide all contact lens wearers with contact lenses that can provide a comfortable, cooling sensation upon insertion without causing a stinging or burning sensation. Summary of the Invention

[0003] It is a feature of the present invention to provide a contact lens that is capable of releasing WS12 while the lens is being worn, without causing a stinging or burning sensation upon insertion. An additional feature of the present invention is to provide a contact lens that provides a refreshing or cooling sensation when the lens is worn. An additional feature of the present invention is to provide a contact lens that reduces eye fatigue. An additional feature of the present invention is to provide a WS12-emitting contact lens that a majority of contact lens wearers will find more comfortable to wear than a lens made of the same material but without WS12, regardless of whether the contact lens wearer experiences symptoms of discomfort or dryness with their current contact lenses. Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by the practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the description and appended claims.

[0004] To achieve these and other advantages, and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention as embodied and broadly described herein, the present invention is directed in part to a hydrogel contact lens containing an amount of WS12 releasably attached to the lens that enhances the comfort or desirability of the contact lens without increasing tearing in the wearer. In one example, the hydrogel contact lens is a silicone hydrogel contact lens. In one example, a silicone hydrogel contact lens provides a basal tear concentration of 1.0 ng / ml to 10 ng / ml of WS12, or 3 ng / ml to 6 ng / ml of WS12, after about 30 minutes of wear. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0005] [Figure 1] 1 is a bar graph showing contact lens wearer preference for either WS12-release contact lenses or control lenses after 7 days of lens wear. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0006] A clinical study was conducted to determine whether contact lenses releasing lower amounts of WS12 than those previously evaluated (described in U.S. Patent Application No. 17 / 729,008) would show any improvement in comfort ratings without causing any stinging or burning sensations on initial lens insertion. Unexpectedly, the majority of study participants overwhelmingly preferred the low-dose WS12-releasing lenses over the control lenses, even though the amount of WS12 used was found to be insufficient to cause an observable increase in tear flow. It was hypothesized that contact lenses releasing relatively low levels of WS12 would achieve a tear concentration of WS12 that was insufficient to trigger the high threshold TRPM8 receptors involved in tearing, yet still provide increased comfort or desirability due to a cooling sensation. Furthermore, the amount of WS12 was insufficient to cause the initial stinging or burning sensations observed with higher dose lenses. Thus, hydrogel contact lenses releasing low doses of WS12 during wear and methods for their manufacture are described herein. The contact lenses may be referred to herein as WS12-releasing contact lenses. WS12 is released in an amount that improves the comfort of the contact lenses during lens wear compared to the control lenses, without causing the lens wearer to have an observable increase in tear production and / or an increase in insertion stinging compared to the control lenses. As used herein, "control lenses" refer to contact lenses that do not contain WS12, but are otherwise identical to the WS12-releasing lenses with which they are being compared.

[0007] A WS12-releasing contact lens comprises a polymeric lens body and an amount of WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body. The amount of WS12 "releasably attached" to the polymeric lens body refers to the total amount of WS12 that can be extracted from the contact lens by the ethanol (EtOH) extraction method described in Example 1 below. In one example, the amount of WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body can be at least about 0.1 μg, 0.2 μg, or 0.3 μg, or 0.4 μg to about 0.5 μg, or 0.6 μg, or 0.7 μg, for example, from about 0.3 μg to about 0.6 μg. In one example, the contact lenses release an amount of WS12 sufficient to provide a mean basal tear concentration in lens wearers (n=5) after 30 minutes of lens wear of 1 ng / ml to 10 ng / ml of WS12, or 2 ng / ml to 8 ng / ml of WS12, or 3 ng / ml to 6 ng / ml of WS12. The concentration of WS12 in the basal tears of contact lens wearers can be determined using routine microcapillary tube tear collection methods and HPLC. In one example, WS12-releasing contact lenses do not increase tearing in lens wearers compared to control lenses. Increased tearing is demonstrated when the pre-lens tear meniscus height (TMH) while wearing a WS12-releasing lens is the same as or less than the TMH after wearing a control lens for the same period of time, e.g., 1 hour, 2 hours, 4 hours or more. Tear meniscus height can be measured using an OCULUS Keratograph (K5M) or other equivalent method.

[0008] As an example, a contact lens is the reaction product of a polymerizable composition with a non-silicone hydrogel. Non-silicone hydrogel contact lenses are typically formed by polymerizing one or more hydrophilic monomers, such as 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) or vinyl alcohol, optionally in combination with other monomers, and do not contain any siloxane molecules. As an example, a contact lens comprises a polymeric lens body that is the reaction product of a polymerizable composition that includes at least one siloxane monomer and at least one hydrophilic monomer and / or at least one hydrophilic polymer. Advantageously, as described in more detail below, a cured polymeric lens body for a silicone hydrogel can be extracted in an extraction solvent containing WS12, resulting in a polymeric lens body having a predetermined amount of WS12 attached thereto. Alternatively, or in addition, WS12 can be added to the polymerizable composition. WS12 can be attached to the polymeric lens body by hydrophobic interactions and / or physically trapped in the polymeric lens body by a polymer network.

[0009] As used herein, the term "siloxane monomer" refers to any molecule that contains at least one Si-O group and at least one polymerizable functional group. Siloxane monomers for use in contact lens compositions are well known in the art (see, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,658,747 and 6,867,245). (All patents and publications mentioned herein and throughout are incorporated by reference in their entirety). In some examples, the polymerizable composition comprises at least 10%, 20%, or 30% to about 40%, 50%, 60%, or 70% by weight of the total amount of siloxane monomer. Unless otherwise specified, as used herein, a given weight percentage (wt%) of a component of the polymerizable composition is relative to the total weight of all polymerizable components and IPN polymer (described further below) in the polymerizable composition. The weight of the polymerizable composition that comes from components, such as diluents, that are not incorporated into the final contact lens product is not included in the weight% calculation.

[0010] In a specific example, the polymerizable composition comprises a hydrophilic vinyl monomer. As used herein, a "hydrophilic vinyl monomer" is a siloxane-free (i.e., does not contain a Si-O group) hydrophilic monomer having a polymerizable carbon-carbon double bond (i.e., vinyl group) present in its molecular structure that is not part of an acrylic group, and the carbon-carbon double bond of the vinyl group is less reactive under free radical polymerization than the carbon-carbon double bond present in the polymerizable methacrylate group. As used herein, the term "acrylic group" refers to a polymerizable group present in acrylates, methacrylates, acrylamides, and the like. Thus, although carbon-carbon double bonds are present in acrylate and methacrylate groups, such polymerizable groups are not considered vinyl groups as used herein. Furthermore, as used herein, a monomer is "hydrophilic" if at least 50 grams of the monomer is completely soluble in 1 liter of water at 20° C. (i.e., has about 5% solubility in water), as determined visually using a standard flask shake method. In various examples, the hydrophilic vinyl monomer is N-vinyl-N-methylacetamide (VMA), or N-vinylpyrrolidone (NVP), or 1,4-butanediol vinyl ether (BVE), or ethylene glycol vinyl ether (EGVE), or diethylene glycol vinyl ether (DEGVE), or any combination thereof. In one example, the polymerizable composition comprises at least 10%, 15%, 20%, or 25% by weight to about 45%, 60%, or 75% by weight of the hydrophilic vinyl monomer. As used herein, a given weight percentage of a particular class of component (e.g., hydrophilic vinyl monomer, siloxane monomer, etc.) in the polymerizable composition is equal to the sum of the weight percentages of each component in the composition that falls within that class. Thus, for example, a polymerizable composition that comprises 5% by weight BVE and 25% by weight NVP, and no other hydrophilic vinyl monomers, is said to comprise 30% by weight hydrophilic vinyl monomer. In one example, the hydrophilic vinyl monomer is a vinyl amide monomer. Exemplary hydrophilic vinylamide monomers are VMA and NVP. In an embodiment, the polymerizable composition comprises at least 25% by weight of the vinylamide monomer.In further embodiments, the polymerizable composition comprises about 25% to about 75% by weight VMA or NVP, or a combination thereof. Additional hydrophilic monomers that may be included in the polymerizable composition are N,N-dimethylacrylamide (DMA), 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), ethoxyethyl methacrylamide (EOEMA), ethylene glycol methyl ether methacrylate (EGMA), and combinations thereof.

[0011] In addition to or as an alternative to the hydrophilic monomer, the polymerizable composition can include a non-polymerizable hydrophilic polymer, resulting in a polymeric lens body that includes an interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) with a silicone hydrogel polymer matrix interpenetrated by the non-polymerizable hydrophilic polymer. In this example, the non-polymerizable hydrophilic polymer is referred to as an IPN polymer, which acts as an internal wetting agent in the contact lens. In contrast, the polymer chains in the silicone hydrogel network formed by polymerization of monomers present in the polymerizable composition are not considered to be IPN polymers. The IPN polymer can be a high molecular weight hydrophilic polymer, for example, from about 50,000 to about 500,000 Daltons. In a specific example, the IPN polymer is polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). In another example, the polymerizable composition is substantially free of polyvinylpyrrolidone or other IPN polymers.

[0012] Optionally, one or more non-silicon-containing hydrophobic monomers can be present as part of the polymerizable composition. A hydrophobic monomer can be considered to be any monomer in which 50 grams of the monomer is not visually completely soluble in 1 liter of water at 20° C. using the standard shake flask method. Examples of suitable hydrophobic monomers include methyl acrylate, or ethyl acrylate, or propyl acrylate, or isopropyl acrylate, or cyclohexyl acrylate, or 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, or methyl methacrylate (MMA), or ethyl methacrylate, or propyl methacrylate, or butyl acrylate, or 2-hydroxybutyl methacrylate, or vinyl acetate, or vinyl propionate, or vinyl butyrate, or vinyl valerate, styrene, or chloroprene, or vinyl chloride, or vinylidene chloride, or acrylonitrile, or 1-butene, or butadiene, or methacrylonitrile, or vinyl toluene, or vinyl ethyl ether, or perfluorohexylethylthiocarbonylaminoethyl methacrylate, or isobornyl methacrylate (IBM), or trifluoroethyl methacrylate, or hexafluoroisopropyl methacrylate, or tetrafluoropropyl methacrylate, or hexafluorobutyl methacrylate, or any combination thereof. When used, the hydrophobic monomer can be present in the reaction product of the polymerizable composition in an amount of from 1% to about 30% by weight, for example, 1% to 25% by weight, 1% to 20% by weight, 1% to 15% by weight, 2% to 20% by weight, 3% to 20% by weight, 5% to 20% by weight, 5% to 15% by weight, or 1% to 10% by weight, based on the total weight of the polymerizable composition.

[0013] The polymerizable composition may further comprise at least one crosslinker. As used herein, a "crosslinker" is a molecule that has at least two polymerizable groups. Thus, the crosslinker can react with functional groups on two or more polymer chains to crosslink one polymer to another. The crosslinker may comprise an acrylic or vinyl group, or both an acrylic and a vinyl group. In certain instances, the crosslinker does not comprise a siloxane moiety, i.e., it is a non-siloxane crosslinker. A variety of crosslinkers suitable for use in silicone hydrogel polymerizable compositions are known in the art (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,231,218, which is incorporated herein by reference). Examples of suitable crosslinking agents include, without limitation, lower alkylene glycol di(meth)acrylates, such as triethylene glycol dimethacrylate, diethylene glycol dimethacrylate, poly(lower alkylene) glycol di(meth)acrylates, and lower alkylene di(meth)acrylates; divinyl ethers, such as triethylene glycol divinyl ether, diethylene glycol divinyl ether, 1,4-butanediol divinyl ether, and 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol divinyl ether; divinyl sulfone; divinylbenzene and trivinylbenzene; trimethylolpropane tri(meth)acrylate; pentaerythritol tetra(meth)acrylate; bisphenol A di(meth)acrylate; methylene bis(meth)acrylamide; triallyl phthalate; 1,3-bis(3-methacryloxypropyl)tetramethyldisiloxane; diallyl phthalate; and combinations thereof.

[0014] As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, the polymerizable composition may include one or more of the additional polymerizable or non-polymerizable components conventionally used in contact lens formulations, such as polymerization initiators, UV absorbers, colorants, oxygen scavengers, chain transfer agents, and the like. In some examples, the polymerizable composition may include an amount of organic diluent that prevents or minimizes phase separation between the hydrophilic and hydrophobic components of the polymerizable composition, such that an optically clear lens is obtained. Diluents commonly used in contact lens formulations include hexanol, ethanol, and / or other primary, secondary, or tertiary alcohols. In other examples, the polymerizable composition is free or substantially free (e.g., less than 500 ppm) of organic diluent. In such examples, the use of siloxane monomers containing hydrophilic moieties, such as polyethylene oxide groups, pendant hydroxyl groups, or other hydrophilic groups, may eliminate the need to include a diluent in the polymerizable composition. Non-limiting examples of these and additional components that may be included in the polymerizable composition are provided in U.S. Pat. No. 8,231,218.

[0015] Non-limiting examples of silicone hydrogels that can be used include comfilcon A, fanfilcon A, stenfilcon A, senofilcon A, senofilcon C, somofilcon A, narafilcon A, delefilcon A, narafilcon A, lotrafilcon A, lotrafilcon B, balafilcon A, samfilcon A, galyfilcon A, and asmofilcon A. A specific example of a hydrogel contact lens of the present invention is a hydrogel contact lens based on a polymerizable composition comprising 25% to 55% by weight of a siloxane monomer, 30% to 55% by weight of a vinyl monomer selected from NVP, VMA, or a combination thereof, and optionally about 1% to about 20% by weight of a hydrophilic monomer selected from N,N-dimethylacrylamide (DMA), 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), ethoxyethyl methacrylamide (EOEMA), or ethylene glycol methyl ether methacrylate (EGMA), or any combination thereof, and optionally about 1% to about 20% by weight of a hydrophobic monomer selected from methyl methacrylate (MMA), isobornyl methacrylate (IBM), or 2-hydroxybutyl methacrylate (HOB), or any combination thereof. Silicone hydrogel materials made from this particular embodiment of the polymerizable composition include stenfilcon A, confilcon A, somofilcon A, funfilcon A, and enfilcon A. In a further example, the polymerizable composition described above may comprise a siloxane monomer of Stenfilcon A, specifically a first siloxane monomer having a structure represented by formula (I):

[0016] [ka] Formula (I) and a second siloxane monomer having a structure represented by formula (II): [ka] Contains formula (II).

[0017] Conventional methods can be used to manufacture the contact lenses of the present invention. As an example, a polymerizable composition for a hydrogel composition is dispensed into a female mold member having a concave surface that defines the anterior surface of the contact lens. A male mold member having a convex surface that defines the posterior surface, i.e., the corneal contact surface, of the contact lens is mated with the female mold member to form a contact lens mold assembly that is subjected to curing conditions, e.g., UV or thermal curing conditions, under which the curable composition is formed into a polymeric lens body. The female and male mold members can be non-polar or polar. The mold assembly is disassembled (i.e., demolded), the polymeric lens body is removed from the mold, and unreacted components are extracted from the lens body using an organic solvent. Advantageously, WS12 can be carried by the polymeric lens during the extraction step. Typically, after curing, the polymeric lens body swells in an extraction solvent containing WS12. When the extracted polymeric lens body is subsequently placed in a hydration solution, e.g., deionized water, the WS12 remains attached to the polymeric lens body when the extraction solvent is removed.

[0018] As an example, the extraction and hydration process can include at least one extraction step in denatured ethanol (EtOH), followed by an extraction step comprising a mixture of EtOH and water, e.g., about 10% to 95% EtOH in water, e.g., about 30% to 80% EtOH in water, followed by at least one hydration step in deionized water, each extraction and hydration step lasting about 15 minutes to about 3 hours at a temperature of about 20°C to about 30°C. Any extraction solvent can be used as the uploading solution for WS12. In one example, the concentration of WS12 in the extraction solvent is about 1.0 μg / ml to about 4.0 μg / ml (i.e., 1 ppm to about 4 ppm). In one example, the first extraction solvent is EtOH, and the second extraction solvent comprises a mixture of 30% to 80% EtOH and 1 ppm to 4 ppm WS12 in water.

[0019] As part of the present invention, the contact lens can be sealed in a contact lens package. The packaging solution sealed in the contact lens package can be any conventional contact lens compatible solution. In one example, the packaging solution comprises, consists of, or consists essentially of an aqueous solution of a buffer and / or an isotonicity agent. In another example, the packaging solution contains additional agents, such as one or more additional antimicrobial agents, and / or comfort agents, and / or hydrophilic polymers, and / or surfactants and / or other beneficial agents. In some examples, the packaging solution can include polysaccharides (e.g., hyaluronic acid, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, hydroxypropyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, etc.) or other high molecular weight polymers, such as polyvinylpyrrolidone, which are commonly used as comfort polymers or thickeners in ophthalmic solutions and contact lens packaging solutions. In other examples, the packaging solution can also include an ophthalmic drug. The packaging solution can have a pH ranging from about 6.8 or 7.0 to about 7.8 or 8.0. In one example, the packaging solution includes a phosphate buffer or a borate buffer. In another example, the packaging solution includes an isotonicity agent selected from sodium chloride or sorbitol in an amount to maintain an osmolality in the range of about 200 to 400 mOsm / kg, typically about 270 mOsm / kg to about 310 mOsm / kg.

[0020] With respect to contact lens packages, the packages may include or comprise a plastic substrate member that includes a cavity designed to hold a contact lens and packaging solution and a flange area extending outwardly from around the cavity. A removable foil is bonded to the flange area to provide a liquid-tight seal. The removable foil may be sealed by any conventional means, such as heat sealing or gluing. Such contact lens packages are commonly referred to as "blister packs" and are well known in the art (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,426,993). The sealed packages may be sterilized by a sterilizing amount of radiation, including heat or steam, such as by autoclaving, or by gamma radiation, electron beam radiation, ultraviolet radiation, and the like. In a specific example, the packaged contact lenses are sterilized by autoclaving. The final product can be a sterilized, packaged contact lens (eg, a silicone hydrogel contact lens) having ophthalmically acceptable surface wettability.

[0021] In some instances, WS12, once applied to the polymeric lens body, is stable and is not substantially released or degraded from the polymeric lens body during autoclaving or storage of a sealed contact lens package containing an unworn hydrogel contact lens in the packaging solution, but is released during wear of the lens. Thus, the packaging solution in which the contact lens is immersed prior to autoclaving, or immediately thereafter, or 1 day, or 30 days, or 60 days, or 120 days thereafter, has a concentration of WS12 below the level of detection, as determined by HPLC. In one example, a contact lens is sealed within the blister package described above, and the blister package is further packaged within a secondary package containing a plurality of blister packages, e.g., at least 7, 14, 30, 60, or 90 blister packages, with each blister package comprising the secondary package containing a contact lens comprising the same amount of WS12 as each of the other contact lenses contained within the secondary package. As an example, all of the contact lenses contained within the secondary package comprise a polymeric lens body comprising 0.2 μg to 0.7 μg, or 0.3 μg to 0.6 μg of WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body, with each of the contact lenses containing the same amount of WS12 (e.g., all of the contact lenses contain 0.4 μg of WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body).

[0022] The WS12 releasing hydrogel contact lenses described herein can be used to increase contact lens comfort in contact lens wearers. The WS12 releasing hydrogel contact lenses described herein can be used to reduce or prevent eye fatigue in contact lens wearers, in one example eye fatigue associated with the use of digital devices, also known as "digital eye strain," "digital eye fatigue," or "computer vision syndrome." The WS12 releasing hydrogel contact lenses described herein can be used to reduce the sensation of dry eyes in contact lens wearers. The WS12 releasing hydrogel contact lenses described herein can be used to provide a comfortable, cooling sensation in contact lens wearers without causing a stinging or burning sensation upon insertion. The following examples illustrate certain aspects and advantages of the present invention, but it should be understood that the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0023] Example 1 Preparation of WS12 releasing contact lenses Silicone hydrogel contact lenses were prepared by curing the formulation for Stenfilcon A in contact lens molds. The cured Stenfilcon A were removed from the molds and extracted by soaking them for 215 minutes in ethanol (EtOH) containing WS12 (Tocris Bioscience) at the loading concentration shown in Table I. The lenses were removed from the EtOH and washed in DI water for approximately 6 minutes, followed by two changes of DI water approximately 30 minutes each. The lenses were transferred to 6 mL glass vials containing 3 mL of phosphate buffered saline (0.78% by weight NaCl, 0.05% by weight sodium phosphate monobasic, and 0.36% by weight sodium phosphate disodium), pH 7.5, referred to herein as PBS. The vials were sealed and autoclaved.

[0024] Each autoclaved lens was transferred to a vial containing 3 ml of EtOH and stored overnight at room temperature on a shaker at 150 rpm to extract WS12 from the lenses. The EtOH extracts of the autoclaved lenses and PBS were analyzed by HPLC (detection wavelength=250 nm) against calibration standards to determine the average amount of WS12 loaded in each (n=5) and whether WS12 leached from the lenses during autoclaving. The results are shown in Table 1. [Table 1]

[0025] Example 2 One-week crossover clinical trial of WS12 releasing contact lenses Twenty participants were enrolled in a 1-week, two-sided, randomized, crossover, double-blind (investigator and participant) study. Participants were considered to be symptomatic lens wearers if they met two criteria: 1) they reported total daily contact lens wear time (their usual lens wear time) minus the daily contact lens wear time they felt was comfortable was 3 hours or more, and 2) they were classified as symptomatic using the classification system outlined in Table 2. This system was adapted from the classification proposed by Young et al. (Characterizing contact lens-related dryness symptoms in a cross-section of UK soft lens wearers. Contact Lens & Anterior Eye 34 (2011) 64-70).

[0026] [Table 2]

[0027] Ten subjects were classified as symptomatic contact lens wearers who reported a rating of 2 or more out of 5 for the intensity of contact lens dryness / discomfort and "sometimes, often, or all the time" for the frequency of contact lens dryness / discomfort. The remaining 10 participants were classified as asymptomatic contact lens wearers who reported a rating of 0 or 1 out of 5 for the intensity of contact lens dryness / discomfort and "rarely or never" for the frequency of contact lens dryness / discomfort. The WS12 releasing lenses included Stenfilcon A contacts containing approximately 0.42 μg of WS12 / lens. MyDay® brand contact lenses were used as control lenses. Participants wore the experimental lenses for at least 8 hours per day and removed the lenses every night, each for one week. After a 2-4 day washout period during which subjects wore their regular lenses, they wore the second type of lens for one week in a randomized order.

[0028] result: The WS12 releasing lenses demonstrated significantly better comfort upon insertion at the study visit for lens dispensing and at the 1-week follow-up visit. Overall, WS12 releasing lenses felt cooler than control lenses upon insertion, and the difference was statistically significant only at the 1-week follow-up visit. Comfort ratings were generally similar between the WS12 release and control lenses at all time points. The stinging / burning sensation on insertion was overall low and similar between the WS12 release and control lenses. Pre-lens tear meniscus heights measured by keratography were similar between both WS12-releasing and control lenses, indicating that tear production was not increased with the WS12-releasing lenses. Participants reported significantly less eye strain upon lens removal on the fifth day with the WS12-releasing lenses. Subjective ratings of dryness were significantly less for the WS12 releasing lenses. Seventy percent (14 / 20) of subjects preferred WS12-emitting lenses at the end of Day 5 and at the final study visit. The majority of subjects reported a strong preference for WS12-emitting lenses. Overall lens preference ratings are shown in Figure 1.

[0029] It should be understood that the disclosure herein refers to certain illustrated embodiments, which are presented by way of example and not limitation. Although illustrative examples are discussed, the intent of the foregoing detailed description should be construed as covering all variations, alternatives, and equivalents of the examples that may fall within the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined by the additional disclosure. Reference herein to an "example" or "embodiment" or "aspect" or "embodiment" or similar phrases is intended to introduce features of a WS12-releasing hydrogel contact lens or component thereof, a sealed contact lens package or component thereof, or a method of making a WS12-releasing hydrogel contact lens (as the context requires) that may be combined with any combination of the previously or subsequently described examples, aspects, or embodiments (i.e., features), unless a particular combination of features is mutually exclusive or the context suggests otherwise. Additionally, as used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural referents (e.g., at least one or more) unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to a "contact lens" includes a single lens as well as two or more of the same or different lenses.

[0030] The entire contents of all cited references in this disclosure are incorporated herein by reference to the extent they are not inconsistent with this disclosure. The present invention may include any combination of the various features or embodiments described above and / or in the claims below, as sentences and / or paragraphs. Any combination of features disclosed herein is considered part of the present invention, and no limitations are intended with respect to combinable features. Other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples of the invention be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of the invention being indicated by the following claims and equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. 1. An unworn, sterile silicone hydrogel contact lens immersed in a packaging solution and sealed in a package, comprising: (a) a polymeric lens body; (b) a quantity of WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body; wherein the amount of WS12 releasably adhered to the polymeric lens body provides a basal tear concentration in the lens wearer of 2 ng / ml to 8 ng / ml of WS12 after 30 minutes of lens wear.

2. 2. The contact lens of claim 1, wherein the basal tear concentration of WS12 30 minutes after wearing the lens is between 3 ng / ml and 6 ng / ml.

3. 3. The contact lens of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the amount of WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body is between 0.2 μg and 0.7 μg.

4. The contact lens of any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the amount of WS12 releasably attached to the polymeric lens body is from about 0.3 μg to about 0.6 μg.

5. 5. The contact lens of claim 1, which does not increase tear meniscus height compared to a control lens.

6. The contact lens of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the package has been autoclaved.

7. A contact lens according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein any WS12 in the packaging solution is below the level of detection as determined by HPLC.

8. The package is (a) a plastic substrate member including a cavity designed to hold a contact lens and a packaging solution; (b) a flange region extending outwardly from a periphery of the cavity; (c) a removable foil attached to the flange area; and The contact lens according to any one of claims 1 to 7, which is a blister package comprising:

9. 10. The contact lens of claim 8, further comprising a secondary package, the secondary package comprising a plurality of blister packages, and every blister package within the secondary package containing a contact lens comprising the same amount of WS12 as every other contact lens contained in the secondary package.

10. 10. The contact lens of claim 9, wherein the secondary package contains at least seven blister packages.

11. Use of a contact lens according to any one of claims 1 to 10 for increasing contact lens comfort in a contact lens wearer.

12. Use of a contact lens according to any one of claims 1 to 10 for reducing eye fatigue in a contact lens wearer.

13. Use of a contact lens according to any one of claims 1 to 10 for reducing the sensation of dry eyes in a contact lens wearer.

14. Use of a contact lens according to any one of claims 1 to 10 to provide a pleasant, cooling sensation in a contact lens wearer without causing a stinging or burning sensation on insertion.

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