Silicone contact lenses with wrinkled surface
View Patent ↗At least one of the surfaces of a silicone contact lens is a wrinkled surface, providing the contact lens surface with a desired topography. The wrinkled surface may include random ridges, either over the entire surface of the lens, or in a desired pattern on the surface of the lens.
1. A method of making a contact lens comprising:
providing a silicone contact lens with a modified surface layer;
swelling the contact lens with a polymerizable swelling agent; and
polymerizing the swelling agent;
whereby the modified surface layer becomes a wrinkled surface.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the contact lens is comprised of a silicone hydrogel copolymer.
3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the silicone hydrogel lens is oxidized with plasma to form a silicate surface layer.
4. The method of claim 2 , further comprising, following the modified surface layer becoming a wrinkled surface, hydrating the contact lens, whereby a wrinkled surface is retained on the hydrated contact lens.
5. The method of claim 2 , wherein a surface of the silicone hydrogel lens is treated with a vinyl-containing plasticizer, prior to exposure to the swelling agent.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein a posterior surface of the contact lens is provided with the modified surface layer, and the posterior surface modified surface layer becomes wrinkled.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the wrinkled surface includes raised ridges.
8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the raised ridges have heights of 0.5 to 1000 nm.
9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the raised ridges have heights of 10 to 600 nm.
10. The method of claim 7 , wherein the wrinkled surface covers an entire surface of the contact lens.
11. The method of claim 7 , wherein the wrinkled surface covers a selected portion of a contact lens surface.
12. The method of claim 1 , comprising:
providing a silicone contact lens with a modified surface layer;
exposing the contact lens to a polymerizable swelling agent, and removing at least some of the swelling agent at the contact lens surface, with swelling agent remaining below the modified surface layer; and
polymerizing the swelling agent;
whereby the modified surface layer becomes a wrinkled surface.
13. The method of claim 1 , further comprising grafting a surface agent to the wrinkled modified surface layer.
14. The method of claim 1 , wherein one lens surface is wrinkled and the other lens surface comprises a surface agent grafted thereto.