Scientists have developed a novel eye drop that rapidly reduces sight-threatening scarring to the surface of the eye.
The cornea is usually transparent, but scars resulting from eye infection or trauma make it opaque causing blurred vision or in extreme cases complete blindness.
Scientists at the University of Birmingham in the UK showed that within a matter of days the eye drop speeds healing, reduces scarring and improves corneal transparency compared to the current standard of care for Pseudomonas aeruginosa, an eye infection commonly associated with poor contact lens hygiene.
The current standard of care for eye infection are eye drops containing antibiotics and corticosteroids to reduce inflammation, followed by intensive lubrication to prevent further damage to the eye during blinking.
These treatments effectively sterilise the eye, although some patients are left with visual 'hazing' due to scars on the cornea, according to a study published in the journal Regenerative Medicine.
The only option to correct this is costly and cumbersome surgical interventions, such as corneal transplants, which are fraught with risks of failure or rejection.
Researchers developed an eye drop which consists of a fluid gel loaded with a natural wound-healing protein called Decorin.
"This innovative fluid gel in the eye drop is designed to retain the Decorin on the surface of the eye, and form a 'therapeutic bandage' that promotes scarless healing," said Ann Logan, who co-led the study.
"The fluid gel is a novel material that can transition between a solid and liquid state. This means it contours itself to the surface of the eye, is retained there, and is only slowly removed by blinking," said Liam Grover, a professor at University of Birmingham.
This research has shown for the first time that the fluid gel has a therapeutic effect in its own right, and the researchers believe it forms a protective barrier that protects the surface of the eye from further damage caused by blinking.
The fluid gel has been patented by University of Birmingham Enterprise.
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