Screenshots: Eyecare scare: Bausch & Lomb withdraws ReNu in USA

Bausch & Lomb, the eyecare company based in Rochester, N.Y., has found itself in trouble in its home country, the United States of America.

On April 10, Bausch & Lomb voluntarily suspended shipment of ReNu, a contact lens solution, after federal health officials linked it Monday to a fungal eye infection that can cause temporary blindness.

SOURCE: MSNBC April 10, 2006

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating 109 reports of Fusarium keratitis infection in patients in 17 states since June 2005, the Associated Press said.

Federal and state health officials have interviewed just 30 of those patients. However, of the 28 who wore soft contact lens, 26 reported using Bausch & Lomb’s ReNu or a generic type of solution also made by the company.

Five of the 26 patients also reported using other types of solutions in addition to ReNu, Bausch & Lomb said. And nine said they wore their lenses overnight, which is known to increase the risk of infection, the CDC said.

On April 5, the ABC News affiliate in Denver, Channel 7, broke the news about the outbreak of fungal eye infection in the US. Thanks reader Bando for the heads-up.

According to MSNBC on April 10, Bausch & Lomb said it would temporarily suspend in the US market shipments of ReNu with MoistureLoc made at its Greenville, S.C., plant.

“The CDC data released today are both troubling and perplexing, as there is an apparent disproportionate representation of U.S.-manufactured ReNu with MoistureLoc in the underlying data. The source of these infections has not been determined,” Bausch & Lomb chairman and chief executive officer Ronald Zarrella said.

Meanwhile, Dr. Daniel Schultz, director of the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said it was too early to determine if Bausch & Lomb’s solution was the cause of the infections. Both the FDA and CDC are investigating a growing number of reports of infection by the fungus. An estimated 30 million Americans wear soft contact lenses. Read the FDA statement here.

Thanks readers YW Loke and Lemming for the heads-up.

In New York, newratings.com reported on April 11 that analysts at Robert W Baird downgrade Bausch & Lomb Incorporated from "outperform" to "neutral," while reducing their estimates for the company. The target price has been reduced from $87 to $48.

According to newsrating.com, the analysts mentioned in a research note published this morning (US time, evening Malaysian time) that there are increased expectations of an association between the lens care solution and a rise in fungal infections in the recent past. The EPS estimates for 2006 and 2007 have been reduced from $3.95 to $2.65 and from $4.59 to $2.96, respectively.

There are currently about 160 news items about Bausch & Lomb's latest issue with ReNu on Google News.

The news has also gone on Reuters, CNN Money, Bloomberg, New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal (subscription required), LA Times, BusinessWeek Online, and Toronto Star (Canada) and Finanzen of Germany.

Bausch & Lomb Malaysia defiant

On March 18, Bausch & Lomb Malaysia defied the Malaysian government's ruling and went on record to state it was not going to withdraw its contact lens multipurpose contact lens solution from the local market as demanded by the local health authority.

SOURCE: The Star, March 18, 2006

We have no reason to understand why Bausch & Lomb, which imports its products from the USA, had refused to take similar swift precautionary action in Malaysia after it has voluntarily withdrawn the implicated products in Singapore and Hong Kong.

Are we not First World enough to warrant equitable treatment bestowed to our neighbouring countries?

Read the archive.

Comments

Why oh why our goverment not being diligent enough to suspend Renu from market?

Maybe we should take another round to MoH on this issue?

Posted by: izudeen | April 11, 2006 08:49 PM

Q:Why oh why our goverment not being diligent enough to suspend Renu from market?
A: Coz' no VIP or his/her NOK got infected using the product....

Posted by: dr.strangelove | April 11, 2006 09:08 PM

it's been almost a month already and our gov is still not doing anything about it? is it another case of sweeping the case underneath the carpet or are they just ignorant about it?

And if B & L are so bloody arrogant about not removing their products then screw it. malaysian consumers are smart enough (I hope) :P to know that if the product is banned in first world countries then we should not use it here.

Posted by: kacang_inc | April 11, 2006 09:37 PM

Duh!! We are a third world country and that is why we are more resilient and hardy. Small containminations wont harm us as we are subjected to having high containinents in our daily drinking water and smoky morning air .

Posted by: Elvis | April 11, 2006 10:12 PM

Let us be honest. If you were an American company and you were in Malaysia where they tell you in Malaysia everything also boleh and you are told from the taxi driver to the doorman that corruption will get you anywhere...of course you to can have that confidence and ignore the Health Ministry headed by an MCA man. If headed by an UMNO man , maybe different. But then again since only money talks ...do they need to take out the stuff fromt eh shelf? After all to America thi sis a third world country with people living in trees....well they might be alomost right in some of their assumptions that govern their actions.

Posted by: Observer | April 11, 2006 10:52 PM

Chua Soi Lek : Show some power can ah?

Posted by: kuzco | April 12, 2006 12:55 AM

c'mon people, show your power.
i for one will never use b&l's product again.

Posted by: lsk | April 12, 2006 01:51 AM

Sadly, we have third world mentality cabinet.

Posted by: ayah_mie | April 12, 2006 08:35 AM

Yesterday, I was at the Guradian Pharmacy in Summit USJ and we saw ReNu on the shelves. When queried, the salesgirl there told us that ReNu in Malaysia was OK (ie no problems). This is misleading as if a consumer is less knowledgeable with the situation, they may be 'persuaded' to buy. It seems like the salesgirl was trying to palm off their ReNu stock. I told my wife to buy another brand.

I am indeed surprised that our Health Ministry is so slow to reponse. Can't we take learnings from other first world countries or is there something to do with national pride? Must we wait for something adverse to happen to someone before we react?

Posted by: caribenar | April 12, 2006 09:53 AM

Malaysia consumer deserved it! They are not analyst but still buy newpapers that tell lies and hide the facts.

Posted by: moo_t | April 12, 2006 10:36 AM

How many Malaysia newspaper carrying the B&L withdraw news? Not at the moment.

By inspecting their online website is intriguing. The star search engine are FAR ahead of any NST online papers.

the Star
http://archives.thestar.com.my/last30days/default.aspx?query=Bausch+%26+Lomb

You get NONE by searching Renu or Bausch & Lomb from any of the NST online papers.

NST group
NSTP online should be given a F for their search engine(unless they did not carried any B&L news at all)
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/nst/result?src_term=Bausch+%26+Lomb
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/nst/result?src_term=renu

Berita harian
http://www.bharian.com.my
(well, let me know if you can enter their website)

None for yet another tabloid from NST
http://www.mmail.com.my/Current_News/MM/result?src_term=Bausch+%26+Lomb&x=5&y=9
http://www.mmail.com.my/Current_News/MM/result?src_term=renu&x=0&y=0
http://www.hmetro.com.my/Current_News/HM/r?src_term=Bausch+%26+Lomb&x=55&y=5

I bet thestar or Sun might report it, but all papers from NST group will skip it.

Posted by: moo_t | April 12, 2006 11:00 AM

Malaysian have been sold out. Very thing boleh and such is your life.....face it. For US companies, your life is cheap when they can pay off VVIPs large sums of money. For some reason, people of Malaysia are viewed are made different from Singaporeans, Japanese or even Americans. It is not race bashing here, just that how a company can buy over our Bolehland MPs whom have sold your lifes out. I am just waiting for the day that they will sell your souls.

Posted by: lupus | April 12, 2006 11:31 AM

it's the same old bloody

"semuanya ok"
and
"take it or leave it"

culture ler..

Posted by: Vertebrato | April 12, 2006 11:43 AM

moo_t,

u've got a point.

how many of the people would take a look at the nutrition facts info when they buy packed food?

time to be aware of these things.

Posted by: Vertebrato | April 12, 2006 11:50 AM

Consumer power in Malaysia is extremely weak. B&L knows that if they had not voluntarily withdrew their products from the shelves in the US ASAP, they would have opened up themselves for severe backlash and not to mention multi-billion dollar suits in the making, should there be concrete evidence linking their lens solution to the funfal infection.

But here, we have B&L Malaysia clearly being defiant. I'm wondering why their HQ in the US has not forced the Malaysian office to do what they have done in the US. Truly perplexing. Another case of 'lives are cheap in Malaysia'?

I'd say boycott Renu solutions. I'm sure the other brands are just as good. At least they wouldn't cause any eye infections. So I urge Malaysians to display a little people power here.

Posted by: Samarium | April 12, 2006 11:55 AM

Come on guys , among all the Health Ministries in the World ,our ranking is the highest. Why? coz our ministers dont Panic like the rest of the them.Nipah virus ? No sweat! Foot and Mouth ,aiyaaa, small matter , avian influenza A (H5N1) virus, geeez ,why so much fuss,its only the flu, and with the world cup close , Mr.Chua would think EBOLA is an electronic soccer team voting system and say yes! we're an E friendly country and ready for it.
p.s: as for the calling to boycott B&L Products.i'm for it,but aint gonna throw my Ray Ban's

Posted by: serpico | April 12, 2006 12:05 PM

It was mentioned that no VIP or NOK kena from this issue so semua nya ok !
How true ! This is bolehland at its Worst !
B&L should be ashamed of its arrogance and I WILL NEVER use them again and hope all those reading will also boycott them wholesale!

Posted by: richL | April 12, 2006 12:32 PM

Vertebrato,
ever wonder also how much of those nutrition "facts" printed on our bolehland products are truth?...

Posted by: LC Teh | April 12, 2006 01:09 PM

The B&L Fungus scare news has made the front page of Yahoo!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060411/ap_on_bi_ge/eye_fungus_stock

Screencap of the news link on the front page of Yahoo:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v738/fatcatlim/fungus_eyescare.jpg

I guess to B&L, Malaysians are akin to disposable contact lenses.

Posted by: Fat Cat Lim | April 12, 2006 03:26 PM

serpico, no need to throw away your RayBans. Just buy a pair of Oakley's and relegate those Raybans to your spare pair ;)

Posted by: Samarium | April 12, 2006 04:50 PM

When the news first appeared in Malaysia, i did visit B&L site in the US and submit a email raising the concern and asked them to quickly check on it. However, up to today, i have yet to receive any reply from them. Perhaps they were thinking my email as a joke. I do hope B&L US learn their lesson now. Personally, i do hope the main reason can be quickly rectify as i've been using B&L solutions for the past few years and have no problem so far.

Posted by: profx | April 12, 2006 10:50 PM

what to do, its the Malaysia boleh mentality at work.

Malaysia boleh jadi mangsa,
Malaysia boleh jadi buta... We want to be the best...
I dunno why Bausch & Lomb MY are still defiant? is it because Malaysia Boleh?

Posted by: p0ts | April 13, 2006 12:35 AM

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Eyecare scare: Bausch & Lomb withdraws ReNu in USA

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