LONDON, April 6 (UPI) -- More than 300 people in England have had to undergo a second cataract surgery to replace faulty lenses, The Times of London reported Tuesday.
The proportion of lenses affected is about two in a thousand, the manufacturer, Bausch & Lomb said. About 800,000 were implanted worldwide -- 88,527 of them in Britain.
At least 19 hospitals in England have begun contacting patients to advise them of the possibility of clouding in the Hydroview lenses.
Bausch & Lomb blamed the problem on a reaction between the lens and a silicone gasket included in its packaging in 2001.
Company scientists discovered silicone compounds from the packaging, introduced in 1997, migrated on to the lens surface, where they acted as catalysts for calcium ions to form. In the presence of fatty acids, this can cause calcification or clouding.
The surgery to replace lenses is done on an out-patient basis, the newspaper said.
