Provided are polymer compositions made by a process comprising: (a) providing a first reactive composition containing: (i) a polymerization initiator that is capable, upon a first activation, of forming two or more free radical groups, at least one of which is further activatable by subsequent activation; (ii) one or more ethylenically unsaturated compounds; and (iii) a crosslinker; (b) subjecting the first reactive composition to a first activation step such that the first reactive composition polymerizes therein to form a crosslinked substrate network containing a covalently bound activatable free radical initiator; (c) contacting the crosslinked substrate network with a grafting composition containing one or more ethylenically unsaturated compounds, wherein the contacting is conducted under conditions such that the grafting composition penetrates into the crosslinked substrate network; and (d) activating the covalently bound activatable free radical initiator at one or more selective regions of the crosslinked substrate network such that the grafting composition polymerizes with the crosslinked substrate network at the selective regions.

The invention relates to an ophthalmic product which comprises a sealed and autoclave-sterilized lens package including (1) a post-autoclave packaging solution containing a polymeric surfactant having an HLB value of from about 11 to about 16 and a Mn of from about 800 to about 20,000 Daltons and (2) a readily-usable silicone hydrogel (SiHy) contact lens immersed in the packaging solution. The readily-usable SiHy contact lens comprises the polymeric surfactant thereon providing an excellent wettability to the readily-usable SiHy contact lens directly out of the lens package, and also the leachable polymeric surfactant which is physically distributed in the polymer matrix of the SiHy contact lens and can be released to the eye of a patient for at least 7 days of daily wear and to replenish the lens surface-bound polymeric surfactant to provide sustainable wettabilities to the contact lens and the eye.

The invention is related to a cost-effective method for making a silicone hydrogel contact lens having a crosslinked hydrophilic coating thereon. A method of the invention involves heating a silicone hydrogel contact lens in an aqueous solution in the presence of a water-soluble, highly branched, thermally-crosslinkable hydrophilic polymeric material having positively-charged azetidinium groups, to and at a temperature from about 40° C. to about 140° C. for a period of time sufficient to covalently attach the thermally-crosslinkable hydrophilic polymeric material onto the surface of the silicone hydrogel contact lens through covalent linkages each formed between one azetidinium group and one of the reactive functional groups on and/or near the surface of the silicone hydrogel contact lens, thereby forming a crosslinked hydrophilic coating on the silicone hydrogel contact lens. Such method can be advantageously implemented directly in a sealed lens package during autoclave.

The invention relates to a soft hydrogel contact lens, especially a silicone hydrogel contact lens, which has a capability of delivering a hydrophobic comfort agent into the eye of a wearer. The hydrophobic comfort agent includes without limitation a monoglyceride, a diglyceride, a triglyceride, a glycolipid, a glyceroglycolipid, a sphingolipid, a sphingo-glycolipid, a phospholipid, a fatty acid, a fatty alcohol, a hydrocarbon having a C.sub.12-C.sub.28 chain in length, a mineral oil, a silicone oil, or a mixture thereof. It can be released from the soft hydrogel contact lens into the eye of a wearer when being worn so as to strengthen and stabilize the tear film lipid layer and alleviate the dryness of the eye.

A method for making ophthalmic devices includes direct compression molding one or more ophthalmic device forming polymers in a mold to form ophthalmic devices.

The invention is related to a contact lens, especially a SiHy contact lens, which comprises a lens bulk material covered with an outer surface hydrogel layer thereon and has a posterior surface and an opposite anterior surface. The outer surface hydrogel layer consists of an anterior outer hydrogel layer and a posterior outer hydrogel layer. A contact lens of the invention is characterized by having a difference in surface softness between its posterior (BC) and anterior (FC) surfaces.

Provided are polymer compositions made by a process comprising: (a) providing a first reactive composition containing: (i) a polymerization initiator that is capable, upon a first activation, of forming two or more free radical groups, at least one of which is further activatable by subsequent activation; (ii) one or more ethylenically unsaturated compounds; and (iii) a crosslinker; (b) subjecting the first reactive composition to a first activation step such that the first reactive composition polymerizes therein to form a crosslinked substrate network containing a covalently bound activatable free radical initiator; (c) contacting the crosslinked substrate network with a grafting composition containing one or more ethylenically unsaturated compounds, wherein the contacting is conducted under conditions such that the grafting composition penetrates into the crosslinked substrate network; and (d) activating the covalently bound activatable free radical initiator at one or more selective regions of the crosslinked substrate network such that the grafting composition polymerizes with the crosslinked substrate network at the selective regions.

The invention relates to a soft hydrogel contact lens, especially a silicone hydrogel contact lens, which has a capability of delivering a hydrophobic comfort agent into the eye of a wearer. The hydrophobic comfort agent includes without limitation a monoglyceride, a diglyceride, a triglyceride, a glycolipid, a glyceroglycolipid, a sphingolipid, a sphingo-glycolipid, a phospholipid, a fatty acid, a fatty alcohol, a hydrocarbon having a C.sub.12-C.sub.28 chain in length, a mineral oil, a silicone oil, or a mixture thereof. It can be released from the soft hydrogel contact lens into the eye of a wearer when being worn so as to strengthen and stabilize the tear film lipid layer and alleviate the dryness of the eye.

A moisturizing composition of a contact lens is disclosed in the present invention. A rinse agent (ex. TEOA) is applied for bonding a moisturizing stabilizer (ex. HPMC) and a compound of a hydrophilic cosolvent (ex. PEG) and a moisturizing additive (ex. HA). Hence, the solubility of the moisturizing additive and the aqueous solution can be improved via applying the hydrophilic cosolvent; the stability of the combination of the moisturizing stabilizer and the moisturizing additive can be improved via the structural and the chemical stabilities of the moisturizing stabilizer itself. Meanwhile, the moisturizing composition disclosed can be directly applied to the raw material of the conventional contact lens during manufacturing the high-moisturizing contact lenses.

Provided are ophthalmic devices comprised of a reaction product of a composition comprising: (i) a crosslinked substrate network containing covalently bound activatable free radical initiators; and (ii) a grafting composition containing one or more ethylenically unsaturated compounds. Also provided are processes for making ophthalmic devices.