Biomedical engineers at the University of California (UC) Davis have devised materials they plan to turn into contact lenses outfitted with pressure sensors and medication stores.  When the sensors detect changes in eye pressure that signal the need for medications, the contact lenses will dispense the medications themselves.

Leading the research is Tingrui Pan, an assistant biomedical engineering professor, and Hailin Cong, a postdoctoral researcher.  The material they developed started with PDMS, or polydimethylsiloxane, onto which they placed precisely patterned powdered silver.  The silver, an antimicrobial agent, then becomes the conductive wiring that makes these contact lenses so “smart.”

Shaped and worn as contact lenses, the PDMS-silver discs are expected to dispense medication as the pressure in the eye dictates.  The contact lenses will also be capable of relaying ocular statistics that can be evaluated to further knowledge of the disease, with improved treatment or prevention the ultimate goal.

On a worldwide basis, glaucoma is one of the main causes of blindness.  Glaucoma is characterized by increased pressure in the interior of the eye.  The pressure can become strong enough to impair vision and lead to blindness.

Pan says the UC research team has applied for approval to test the lenses on humans.  His biomedical engineering team is working in collaboration with researchers at UC Davis’ School of Medicine ophthalmology department, led by Professor James Brandt.

The fabrication technique developed by Pan and Cong is discussed in detail in the July issue of the journal, Advanced Functional Materials.

Source: University of California - Davis