Uni of Liverpool awarded £2.1m to develop eye  ‘bandage’

Researchers from the University of Liverpool have received £2.1m from the Medical Research Council Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme to develop a contact lens that can repair eye damage.

Dr Hannah Levis was leading the team, which would work on an eye ‘bandage’ over the next three years that makes direct contact with the corneal epithelial tissue to heal persistent defects.

Dr Levis, reader in ophthalmic bioengineering at the Eye and Vision Sciences department at the University of Liverpool, said: ‘Persistent corneal epithelial defects pose a clinical challenge even for experienced ophthalmologists and unfortunately standard treatments tend to be ineffective. Sadly, this results in patients experiencing prolonged discomfort and diminished vision.