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Bausch+Lomb Recalls Some Eye Ointment

Bausch+Lomb has recalled tubes of one of its eye-care products due to complaints about it causing irritation for some users.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals, the Canadian-based parent company of B+L says the company has voluntarily recalled about 850,000 tubes of an eye-care ointment because some tubes contained tiny crystal particles that could injure the cornea.

That according to the Wall Street Journal, which says the ointment, called Muro 128, is an over the counter product used to treat corneal edema, a swelling of the outermost layer of the eye.

B+L says the problem was not caused by the manufacturing process, but  is likely due to extreme weather conditions last winter, and says the affected products may have had the crystals forming in the ointment due to freezing temperatures.

The company says it initiated the voluntary recall in the interest of patient safety after an increase in the number of complaints it received from users who reported a gritty, sand-like feeling in the eye after use of the product.

The recall was originally reported to retailers and distributors May 30, but last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration also posted some details on its website.

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.