I have a number of patients that use Soothe XP (Bausch & Lomb, Madison, NJ) on a regular basis for symptomatic relief of dry eyes and have been quite frustrated over the voluntary recall on the Soothe line by Bausch & Lomb last year. Here's the history of the recall and the latest news:
On January, 19, 2011, Bausch & Lomb recalled their newest addition to the Soothe product line,
Soothe Xtra Hydration, after reports of small foreign bodies clogging the opening of the bottle after the bottle had been opened and partially used. On testing, it was found that the particles were actually small clumps of mold. On February 24, 2011, Bausch & Lomb recalled several lots of
Soothe XP after some tested bottles failed to meet preservative specifications before the product shelf-life had expired.
In both cases, the recall was voluntary and no harm was done to any patients as a result of using the product. Feeling that the preservative was the issue, B&L stopped all production of both products last year while an investigation was started.
In October 2011, I had the opportunity to speak with representatives from Bausch & Lomb at the
AAO Annual Meeting in Orlando and was told that both products would be back on the market in January 2012. Unfortunately, this was an optimistic outlook on the situation. During a visit with my B&L reps last week, I was informed that both products were off the market indefinitely, although a new artificial tear would be launching later this year.
This is bad news for those patients who really liked Soothe XP (the Xtra Hydration wasn't on the market long enough to gather a strong following).
Alternatives to Soothe XP include (thicker, longer-lasting drops, though may blur vision):
