Papillary hypertrophy of the upper tarsal conjunctiva during contact lens wear: a 4-month study with BEN22 detergent in contact lens care

The effect of a 50:50 mixture of L-α-rhamnopyranosyl-β-hydroxydecanoyl-β-hydroxydecanoate and 2-O-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-β-hydroxydecanoyl-β-hydro-xydecanoate (BEN22) on the rate of papillary hypertrophy was studied in 47 contact lens wearers for two periods of 8 weeks each. The care solutions were 0.00025% chlorhexidine acetate (CHX) with or without 0.005% BEN22. CHX and CHX + BEN22 were used simultaneously by each subjects but in different eyes. The grade of papillary hypertrophy increased in both the CHX and the CHX + BEN22 group during the first period but not during the second period. There were no differences between protein content of lenses or tear lactoferrin activity in the groups. In giant papillary conjunctivitis, tear lactoferrin levels were low, but papillary hypertrophy in its milder forms did not correlate with tear lactoferrin levels. BEN22 was well tolerated but did not diminish the rate of papillary hypertrophy.