Alcon unveils Precision7 one-week replacement contact lens

Alcon, Inc. has officially kicked off the U.S. launch of its newest contact lens: PRECISION7, a one-week replacement contact lens.

The product news was announced during the 2024 American Academy of Optometry’s annual meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana, this week.

Let’s talk about this new lens.

The PRECISION7 is a weekly lens marketed as being “closest to a daily disposable lens” that features the company’s unique ACTIV-FLO System (more on that later).

With built-in permanent moisturizing and replenishing agents, wearers are intended to receive 16 hours of comfort and vision.

The lens material: serafilcon A with a 55% lens water content.

Talk about this ACTIV-FLO System.

The ACTIV-FLO System consists of a moisturizing (wetting) agent embedded within the lens matrix featuring a proprietary replenishing agent that’s continually released to moisturize the surface for seven days.

A 2022 study evaluated the wetting agent’s efficacy when used on a silicon-hydrogel (SiHy) lens material, finding the following after soaking the fully loaded lens in it for 7+ days:

The agent’s back-extraction released only ∼20% of the loaded material
The remaining ∼80% of the material was irreversibly bound in the lens matrix
The agent was found to be more hydrophilic with a high polarity
Its strong binding led to slow transient diffusion and significant irreversible retention

All in all: Investigators concluded that the agent (ie: ACTIV-FLO System) maintained enhanced lens wettability over time.

Now circle back to that 16 hours of comfort.

That data is based on a 2023 Alcon-sponsored, two-week clinical study conducted in the U.S., in which 181 participants were enrolled.

Nice! But wait a moment: Isn’t there already a PRECISION1 brand?

Indeed … but the PRECISION1 (and PRECISION1 Astigmatism) contact lenses are daily disposables (not weekly, keep in mind) featuring another key technology: SMARTSURFACE.

What this is: A permanent water surface technology (>80%) featuring a micro-thin layer of moisture (2 to 3 microns)

That lens’s technical specifications:

Verofilcon A lens material
51% core water content
Ultraviolet (UV) blocking capabilities (Class 1 UV block [ ≥90% UVA, ≥99% UVB)

Interesting. Back to PRECISION7: What else is unique about this lens?

Alcon noted that, for the first time, it will be introducing the PRECISION7 in both sphere and toric lenses to the U.S. market simultaneously.

The significance of this: Not only will eyecare professionals (ECPs) now be able to provide lens options for the majority of their patients, but this also enables them to address a broader range of vision needs immediately, according to Kristen Brotherson, general manager, U.S. Vision Care at Alcon.

Go on …

PRECISION7 is also a new addition to the company’s Alcon WaterInnovations portfolio of contact lenses, which includes both daily disposable and monthly replacement options such as:

TOTAL1
- Featuring Water Gradient and CELLIGENT Technologies
TOTAL30
- Featuring Water Gradient and SmarTears Technologies
  - Includes the TOTAL30 MultiFocal lenses, launched in October 2023
PRECISION1

And why should ECPs consider this for their patients?

Speaking on the capabilities of this new lens, Jason Compton, OD, FAAO, noted that PRECISION7 “has an easy and intuitive replacement schedule that allows my patients to pick their preferred day of the week to replace their contact lenses.”

Which makes all the difference for their satisfaction, right?

Indeed. And Alcon is most aware of that—particularly in light of the company launching their Alcon Innovator Program last month.

What that is: A new initiative aimed toward partnering with eyecare professionals (ECPs) to not only identify current gaps in contact lens offerings but also call attention to and address the market’s unmet needs.

Paint a picture of these unmet needs.

As The Vision Council reported earlier this fall, new contact lens wearers generally benefit most from:

More personalized care to meet their lifestyle needs
More attention from the entire clinical practice
More encouragement and training from staffers

Additionally: The Contact Lens Institute also revealed recent insights on contact lens behavior trends, finding that the top influencing factors for contact lens patient referrals included factors such as:

An ECP explaining the benefits of lens wear (66%)
Understanding how to insert and remove lenses (52%)
Being given trial lenses during exam visits (51%)
Having a wider range of price/performance options (47%)
Awareness of lenses for specific eye conditions (46%)

Interesting … now, last question: Is PRECISION7 available yet?

Alcon reported that the lens launch (including those toric and spheric options) will be available through “select ECPs effective immediately in the U.S.”

And after that: The company will make the lens more broadly commercially available across the country in January 2025 (and outside the U.S. later in the year).