Speaker Eleisha Dudson with Alcon's Megan Zabell at the Total30 launch in Auckland

Launching its new Total30 reusable contact lens (CL) at the Auckland event of its New Zealand and Australian roll-out, Alcon said this is the first and only monthly water-gradient CL that mimics the ocular surface structure and “feels like nothing, even after 30 days of wear”.

Reusable wearers make up 58% of CL wearers in New Zealand and Australia and 73% of them are quietly suffering from discomfort, said Megan Zabell, Alcon’s senior professional education and development manager. Due to a decade of limited innovation, this segment has experienced little value growth compared with dailies, resulting in a gap in the monthlies’ market for something new, she said. “Total30’s unique Celligent Technology mimics the brush-like corneal surface, attracting water molecules while being resistant to lipids and bacteria.”

An in vitro study comparing Total30 with other leading reusable CLs found Total30 to have 90% less bacterial adhesion, she said. It was also found to have superior lubricity (three times more slippery compared to competing brands) and provided longer-lasting surface moisture (five times softer).

Wellington-based optometrist Eleisha Dudson, who specialises in myopia management and CL fitting, is among the Australasian practitioners trialling the new Total30 lens. Despite some challenging cases, including a long-Covid patient and a “monosyllabic pre-teen”, she said Total30 has been generally well accepted, appears easy to put in and take out and offers no handling problems. One patient, a 48-year-old woman and first-time CL wearer, who had been struggling with multiple pairs of glasses for different screen uses, said the lens felt ‘wet’ on the eye, said Dudson, but having trialled the lenses for three weeks is now a very happy CL convert.

Starting the patient conversation, Dudson first tackles her favourite aspect of the lens – its lipid- and bacteria-repellent properties, she said, explaining that the barrier’s positive and negative charge keeps bigger particles like bacteria and lipids out while letting the smaller water molecules in. Besides chemistry, she also discusses the economic and environmental advantages of reusable CLs vs dailies with patients. Talk to all your patients about CLs, she told fellow practitioners in the audience, reminding them that a patient’s annual check-up isn’t just about ocular health but also a great opportunity to discuss new technologies and better options for them.

Total30 is available with sphere, multifocal and toric parameters in a wide range of powers and has the same fitting design as Air Optix plus HydraGlyde and Total1, said Rich Oliver, cluster franchise head Alcon Vision Care ANZ. “As far as we are aware, this is the first time a contact lens manufacturer in Australia and New Zealand has released all three optical designs at once with all power parameters for each lens available at launch. We’ve heard from optometrists that this makes prescribing easier and we understand patients may require different designs in each eye. We hope this means more patients can experience the benefits of Total30.”