Cleaning hydrophilic contact lenses by electrochemical means

Abstract

A composition and method for cleaning and disinfecting of contact lenses that employ an electrical field applied to a lens that causes contaminating deposits to migrate therefrom is described. The composition of the invention includes a pair of component materials having different electrochemical potentials wherein the materials are substantially contained in a form wherein each material remains sufficiently physically separated when in contact with opposite sides of the lens such that the difference in electrochemical potential between the two materials is sufficient to cause charged contaminating deposits to migrate from the lens. The method of the invention requires placing a contaminated lens between a pair of component materials having different electrochemical potentials wherein physical separation is maintained, preferably, by including one of the components in a gel while the other component is in solution or another gel. Preferably, one component of the pair of materials is an oxidizing agent while the second component is a reducing agent. An example of a suitable pair is hydrogen peroxide suspended in a carbopol gel and a solution of sodium thiosulfate, as the reducing agent. A lens is coated with the oxidant gel, placed in the reductant solution and held at room temperature for 2-4 hours, wherein the electrochemical field established between the pair achieves about a 29% protein removal.