Opti-Free chemical disinfectant: a safety study with various soft contact lenses

A 6-month, Phase I clinical study evaluated Opti-Free, a new polyquaternium-1 chemical disinfectant intended for use with all types of soft contact lenses. Fifty-one patients were enrolled and divided into two groups. Group A used the product under exaggerated conditions, with daily exposure of Durasoft 3 (55%) and Hydrocurve II (55%) medium water content, ionic lenses to 5 mL of Opti-Free for 16 hours. Beginning on day 15, group A patients began a normal daily use schedule. Patients in group B wore CSI (38%), Permalens (71%), and Softcon (55%) contact lenses and used the regimen under normal daily use conditions throughout the study. The result indicate that Opti-Free is safe and effective under both normal and exaggerated use conditions. The implications of these data for patient safety are discussed.