A flexible contact lens that senses eye pressure and releases a drug on-demand could help treat glaucoma, the second leading global cause of blindness worldwide.

Where this new research makes ground is in developing a device capable of detecting changes in eye pressure and delivering therapeutic drugs as needed.

Recent efforts to develop smart contact lenses as wearable devices for treating eye conditions have either focused on sensing pressure changes in the eye or delivering a drug – but not both – and glaucoma treatment usually involves eye drops, laser therapy, or surgery to reduce eye pressure .

For something like this to work, it needs to be sensitive enough to detect pressure changes and release precise amounts of drug on demand – all without blocking vision and irritating the eye. .

This air film hooks into a cantilevered electrical circuit which senses changes in intraocular pressure when the air pocket is compressed by outward pressure from the eye.