Passion creates motivation, which leads to innovation- Craig Groeschel
IMU School of Pharmacy students’ effort of inventing “Medicated Eyeliner- Blefaliner” for blepharitis, which embodies Imagination, Innovation & Insight – the 3 I’s of IMU, won the “Merit Award” in Medical Innovation Idea Challenge- MIIC 2.0. This event was organised at UKM Medical Centre (UKMMC) on 30 March 2019. The purpose of the event is to invite young healthcare minds to share their innovative ideas which can improve the patient’s quality of life.
Blepharitis, which is the inflammation of the eyelids, employs the use of topical ointments or eye drops to alleviate the condition. Patient compliance with these dosage forms is often low, due to irritation and difficulty in applying the medication onto the eye. The ointment or eye drops often create a mess and cause blurred vision, thus reduces their effectiveness in treating the condition. Apart from that, the risk of a secondary infection and it spreading is also present. The proposed solution to counter these issues is to create a modified eyeliner which would contain the required medication, and can be self-administered by the patient by applying on their eyes. Blepharitis occurs in either two forms, anterior blepharitis (where the eyelashes are attached, usually caused by staphylococcus sp. infections) and posterior blepharitis (inner eyelid, caused by problems with the Meibomian glands in the eye). As such, there will be 2 types of tip available for application of medication, a mascara-like brush tip to apply the medication on the eyelashes and an eyeliner brush tip to apply medication on the eyelid. This medicated eyeliner can be one of the new ocular drug delivery system in near future.
“This concept is deemed to be useful as it can improve patients’ compliance with ophthalmic medications. Having the same consistency as one would in a conventional cosmetic eyeliner, the medication will not be easily wiped off or run. It also maintains sterility since it removes the need of patients to use their fingers to help apply the medication. This greatly reduces the need to clean and reapply, as well as reducing the risks of an infection. Blepharitis is a common condition that affects mostly women, and this design can also double as a cosmetic while having its therapeutic use as well” Dr Manisha Pandey, Principal Investigator
Students Lee Khai Shien, Kishen Kunalan, Vilashini Saravanan, Wong Yee Hua and their supervisor of this project Dr Manisha Pandey, Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, IMU are willing to extend their research further on this device to ensure the safety of targeted patients.
