Bausch and Lomb has announced plans to launch a novel daily nutritional supplement for dry eye in the United States later this year, after a successful clinical study.

The supplement, which features a proprietary blend of ingredients including lutein, zeaxanthin isomers, curcumin, and vitamin D3, will be marketed under the brand name Blink NutriTears.

Bausch and Lomb said the clinical study met both primary endpoints, a change in baseline at day 56 (eight weeks) in:

• tear production (Schirmer’s test), and

• in ocular symptoms measured by Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) score.

The study also met secondary endpoints, showing statistically significant improvements in tear-film break-up time (TBUT), osmolarity, ocular surface health, and presence of an inflammatory marker.

Bausch and Lomb’s Executive Vice President, Research and Development and chief medical officer, Yehia Hashad said Blink NutriTears would “offer a novel nutritional option that can provide dry eye symptom relief in as little as two to four weeks”.

The announcement comes after the publication of the results of a prospective, randomised, double-blind, parallel, placebocontrolled study evaluating the efficacy and safety of NutriTears in 155 adult participants with mild dry eye symptoms.1

NutriTears was found to be welltolerated. No serious adverse events were reported during the study period.

Reference available at mivision.com.au