RP unaffected by US withdrawal of lens care product

There will be no impact on Bausch & Lomb products in the Philippines following the recent announcement by the company to voluntarily and temporarily withdraw ReNu with MoistureLoc in the US pending investigation of reports of Fusarium infections among contact lens wearers.

In a statement, the company clarified that the product available here is ReNu MultiPlus, which has been long trusted by consumers and eye professionals all over the world for almost a decade.

"While Bausch & Lomb has not launched ReNu with MoistureLoc in the Philippines, there may be consumers who purchase and/or import the product from other sources. Bausch & Lomb advises these consumers to switch to ReNu MultiPlus until current investigations are concluded," the company said.

The company is initiating this voluntary and temporary withdrawal of ReNu with MoistureLoc manufactured in the US plant to eliminate any confusion among contact lens wearers about what to do while the investigation is ongoing.

"This action does not apply to other Bausch & Lomb products. We would also like to emphasize that no unusual trends of fungal keratitis have been reported within the Philippines. All Bausch & Lomb products sold here meets the most stringent safety, efficacy and quality tests and standards set by the US FDA and similar health agencies around the world," the company said.

Raymond Cheng, commercial director of Bausch & Lomb Philippines said the company is closely monitoring the incidence of the fungal keratitis in other markets where the infections have been reported.

"There is no unusual trends of fungal keratitis that we know of to the best of our knowledge, that have been reported in the Philippines. We will continue to cooperate with the local health authorities and leading experts in the fields of microbiology, epidemiology and ophthalmology in the US, in a multi-pronged, multi-national effort to determine the root cause. We want to reassure all our consumers in the Philippines that we are taking every possible step to ensure their health and safety," he said.