1.5 Million Bottles of Bausch & Lomb Contact Lens Solution Recalled

Rochester, NY- Bausch & Lomb Inc., the major U.S. eye care company is recalling 1.5 Million bottles of their ReNu MultiPlus lens cleaner because of iron in the solution (www.msnbc.com). This follows a worldwide recall of the the company's Renu MoistureLoc solution in 2006.

The elevated level of trace iron could cause the contact lens solution to lose its effectiveness more than a year before its expiration date (www.msnbc.com). This could lead to increased eye infections and other eye problems, as the contact lenses would not be properly disinfected prior to use. The increased iron may also lead to solution discoloration, according to Bausch and Lomb.

No one has reported injury caused by the iron. Representatives from Bausch & Lomb said it believes virtually most of the affected solution, made at its Greenville, S.C., plant last year, had already been used by lens wearers (www.monstersandcritics.com).

Approximately one million bottles of the Bausch and Lomb solution were distributed in the United States and another 500,000 in Canada, Korea, Taiwan and Latin America (www.msnbc.com). Bausch & Lomb has notified the Food and Drug Administration and the proper regulators in the other affected countries of the recall (www.msnbc.com).

"I want to emphasize that this is completely unrelated to and different from the MoistureLoc recall," company spokeswoman Barbara Kelley stated. "There have been no serious adverse events associated with this occurrence, and the possibility of a serious adverse event is remote."

The recalled lots of Bausch & Lomb Renu MultiPlus contact lens solution all carry the expiration date '2008-03' on the bottle.

Consumers may check the company`s Web site at www.bausch.com/productrecall or call its consumer affairs line, 866-259-8255, to arrange for a replacement.