Contact lenses with blended microchannels
View Patent ↗Contact lenses for use in eyes are provided and include a lens body and a plurality of microchannels defined in a posterior face of the lens body. The microchannels are structured to promote effective tear fluid exchange between an exposed surface of the eye and a surface of the eye covered by the lens body. Each of the microchannels preferably includes a substantially junctionless, convex surface along a major portion of a length of the microchannel.
1. A silicone hydrogel contact lens, comprising:
a silicone hydrogel lens body having a posterior face and an anterior face; and
a plurality of microchannels defined in the posterior face of the lens body and defining a substantially continuous wave form circumferentially throughout substantially the entire circumference of the lens, the lens body being structured to reduce the time to exchange 95% of tear fluid by at least about 5% when the contact lens is worn on an eye relative to a substantially identical contact lens without a plurality of microchannels.
2. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 1 , wherein the lens body is structured to reduce the time to exchange 95% of tear fluid by at least about 15% when the contact lens is worn on an eye relative to a substantially identical contact lens without a plurality of microchannels.
3. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 1 , wherein each microchannel of the plurality of microchannels defines a waveform circumferentially.
4. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 1 , wherein each microchannel of the plurality of microchannels defines a substantially junctionless waveform circumferentially.
5. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of microchannels defines a substantially continuous, substantially junctionless waveform circumferentially throughout substantially the entire circumference of the lens.
6. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 1 , wherein each of the microchannels comprises a microchannel which is substantially junctionless along at least a portion of a length of the microchannel.
7. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 1 , wherein the lens body includes an optical zone which is substantially free of the plurality of microchannels.
8. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of microchannels comprises about 3 to about 200 microchannels.
9. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 1 , wherein the lens body is structured to provide enhanced tear mixing of post-lens tear film of a person of a desired group of people when worn on an eye of the person relative to a substantially identical contact lens worn by another person of a different group of people.
10. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 9 , wherein the lens body is structured to provide enhanced tear mixing of post-lens tear film of a person of a group of people who have eye or eyelid characteristics specific for the group of people.
11. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 9 , wherein the lens body is structured to enhance tear mixing of post-lens tear film when the contact lens is worn on an eye of an Asian person relative to tear mixing of post-lens tear film provided by an identically structured lens worn on an eye of a non-Asian person.
12. A silicone hydrogel contact lens comprising:
a silicone hydrogel lens body having a posterior face, and an anterior face, a thickness defined as the maximum distance between the posterior face and the anterior face, and a plurality of radially extending molded microchannels defined in the posterior face of the lens body and defining a substantially continuous wave form circumferentially throughout substantially the entire circumference of the lens and having a depth less than about 90% of the thickness, the microchannels sized and adapted to promote effective tear fluid exchange between an exposed surface of an eye and a surface of the eye covered by the lens body.
13. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 12 , wherein the lens body is structured to reduce the time to exchange 95% of tear fluid by at least about 5% when the contact lens is worn on an eye relative to a substantially identical contact lens without a plurality of microchannels.
14. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 12 , wherein the lens body is structured to reduce the time to exchange 95% of tear fluid by at least about 35% when the contact lens is worn on an eye relative to a substantially identical contact lens without a plurality of microchannels.
15. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 12 , wherein each of the microchannels includes a curved surface and wherein the curved surface of each microchannel is substantially continuously curved circumferentially.
16. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 12 , wherein each of the microchannels is substantially junctionless along a portion of a length of the microchannel.
17. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 12 , which includes an optical zone which is substantially free of the plurality of microchannels.
18. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 12 , wherein the lens body is structured to provide enhanced tear mixing of post-lens tear film of a person of a desired group of people when worn on an eye of the person relative to a substantially identical contact lens worn by another person of a different group of people.
19. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 12 , wherein the lens body is structured to provide enhanced tear mixing of post-lens tear film of a person of a group of people who have eye or eyelid characteristics specific for the group of people.
20. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 12 , wherein the lens body is structured to enhance tear mixing of post-lens tear film when the contact lens is worn on an eye of an Asian person relative to tear mixing of post-lens tear film provided by an identically structured contact lens worn on an eye of a non-Asian person.
21. A silicone hydrogel contact lens comprising:
a silicone hydrogel lens body having a posterior face, an anterior face, and a thickness defined as the maximum distance between the posterior face and the anterior face, and a plurality of radially extending molded microchannels defined in the posterior face of the lens body and defining a substantially continuous wave form circumferentially throughout substantially the entire circumference of the lens and having a depth less than about 90% of the thickness.
22. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 21 , wherein the lens body comprises from about 3 to about 200 microchannels.
23. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 21 , wherein the lens body comprises from about 10 to about 100 microchannels.
24. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 21 , wherein each of the microchannels has a decreasing taper toward an optical axis of the lens body.
25. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 21 , wherein each of the microchannels has a maximum width adjacent a peripheral edge of the lens body.
26. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 21 , wherein the depth of the microchannels is less than about 80% of the thickness of the lens body.
27. The silicone hydrogel contact lens of claim 21 , wherein the depth of the microchannels is from about 0.1 microns to about 50 microns.
28. A silicone hydrogel contact lens, comprising:
a silicone hydrogel lens body having a posterior face and an anterior face; and
a plurality of microchannels defined in the posterior face of the lens body and defining a substantially continuous wave form circumferentially throughout substantially the plurality of microchannels, the lens body being structured to reduce the time to exchange 95% of tear fluid by at least about 5% when the contact lens is worn on an eye relative to a substantially identical contact lens without a plurality of microchannels.