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Do you need reading glasses, or find yourself blowing up the font on your computer? A new kind of eye drop could help you see up close.
In October, the US Food and Drug Administration approved Vuity, an eye drop used to treat presbyopia, or age-related blurry near vision. With this condition, which typically starts after age 40, people’s vision becomes blurry as they try to focus on an object close to them.
On Thursday, Allergan (owned by AbbVie) announced that the eye drops are now available by prescription in pharmacies nationwide. Allergan says its medication is the first and only eye drop approved by the FDA to treat presbyopia.
According to Allergan’s Vuity website, the drops work by restricting pupil size with a formula containing pilocarpine, which has been used in other medications, including some that treat the eye. Allergan says the eye drops start working as soon as 15 minutes after they’ve been administered, can last up to six hours and don’t impact distance vision.
Clinical studies prior to the FDA’s approval of Vuity included 750 participants ages 40 to 55 who have presbyopia, according to Allergan’s press release. Compared with the placebo group, “a statistically significant proportion of participants” were able to read three or more additional lines on a reading chart. The most common side effects were headache and eye redness (occurring in more than 5% of the participants), but there were no serious side effects reported. Vuity isn’t a replacement for reading glasses, and it won’t help people with other eye conditions, including myopia (nearsightedness) and hyperopia (farsightedness), which can have symptoms similar to presbyopia but is a different condition.
An AbbVie spokesperson said that for many patients, Vuity will cost $79 for a 30-day supply (a 2.5 milliliter bottle), but that pricing may vary depending on the pharmacy or insurance coverage.
The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.