The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Friday reported a 19 percent increase in the confirmed cases of a serious eye infection that has prompted eye care company Bausch & Lomb to recall one of its products.
The CDC said it has confirmed 102 cases of Fusarium keratitis, a potentially blinding eye infection. That is up from 86 confirmed cases as of May 2.
But the CDC added it is "too early" in its review to say whether a single product or solution is responsible for the outbreak.
Bausch & Lomb last month stopped shipping its ReNu with MoistureLoc contact lens solution after a high percentage of people with the infection were found to be MoistureLoc users.
The infections were first reported in Asia late last year and the company Thursday said a "handful" of cases have now been confirmed in Europe.
Bausch & Lomb, whose shares have fallen 38 percent so far this year, went on the offensive as it moved to shore up market share losses.
The company sent a letter to customers defending its actions. Bausch Chief Executive Ron Zarrella, in a recorded video message on the company Web site, assured consumers the company is working diligently with health officials to determine the source of the infection.
The moves lifted shares more than 4 percent Friday amid a widespread rally in the broader market.
The CDC did not provide an update on how many of the confirmed cases of the infection used Bausch & Lomb products, but said the percentage of ReNu with MoistureLoc users has remained consistent at about 50 to 60 percent of cases throughout its probe.
Health officials have yet to determine the root cause of the eye infection, but the strong link to Bausch & Lomb products has taken a devastating toll on the company's U.S. market share, according to Bank of America analyst David Maris.
Citing new sales data collected by ACNielsen, Maris said Bausch & Lomb has lost nearly a third of its overall lens care market share in the United States in the past month.
Maris, in a note to clients, said the share loss has moved well beyond the MoistureLoc product, which fell to a share of 3.1 percent in April, down from about 10.5 percent in March. He said the MultiPlus brand fell 17 percent in the period to a share of 12.8 percent.
On Tuesday, the CDC reported that of 56 cases of the infection confirmed among contact lens wearers, 32 used ReNu with MoistureLoc, 15 used ReNu MultiPlus and 7 used an unspecified Bausch product. It also said three patients used Alcon Inc. products and three used products made by Advanced Medical Optics Inc. .
Analysts seized on the revelation that 27 percent of confirmed cases were users of Bausch's MultiPlus brand, suggesting that the entire ReNu franchise might be at risk.
Bausch & Lomb derives 20 percent of its sales and some 50 percent of its profit from its lens care franchise, Weinstein said.
Harris Nesbitt analyst Joanne Wuensch said investors may have reacted favorably to the company's attempts to stand behind its brands, but she expects more troubles ahead.
"They are not out of the woods," Wuensch said.
Bausch shares rose $1.70 to close at $42.89 in Friday trade on the New York Stock Exchange.
