The Hindu Business Line : Bausch & Lomb says no ReNu impact in India

Bausch & Lomb (B&L) may have temporarily suspended US shipments of ReNu with MoistureLoc lens care solutions produced in its Greenville manufacturing facility following incidence of the rare fungal infection Fusarium Keratitis among contact lens wearers, but the company claims that this does not affect any other product and has no impact in India.

Responding to queries from Business Line, Mr J.P. Singh, Managing Director, B&L Eyecare (I) Pvt Ltd, said, "All our ReNu MultiPlus and ReNu with MoistureLoc products are manufactured in India under highly stringent safety standards set by and approved by the local health authorities. These products are exclusively made for India at our plant at Bhiwadi, Rajasthan, and are not sourced from the US."

The US health authorities are investigating 109 cases of Fusarium Keratitis, a rare but serious eye infection that could cause permanent vision loss if left untreated. Of these, 26 patients said they had used B&L products or generic versions made by the company.

Mr Singh also said there has been no unusual increase in fungal eye infections in India based on consultations with key referral centres to identify reports of infection.

Available scientific evidence does not establish any type of ReNu solution as a cause for the infections taking place overseas.

In fact, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said that so far, their investigations have shown no direct cause and effect between any particular product and the infections. "Both the FDA and the Centre for Disease Control have still to determine if the reports of infections in the US represent an increase of the infections; they have yet to identify the root cause for the infections," Mr Singh added.

No impact on retail sales

While refusing to divulge the annual sales of ReNu, the company claimed that there has been no impact on retail sales. In fact, retailers in Delhi are not aware of the developments abroad and are selling the product as usual. Health Ministry officials also added that the drug regulator has not yet received any complaints.

In the US, large retailers such as Wal-Mart and Walgreen have started pulling the product off the shelves. In that market revenues from the ReNu with MoistureLoc solutions, stood at about $45 million in 2005.

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