• The FDA recalled or warned against using 34 eye drops products this week. 
  • The eye drops were sold by major retailers including Amazon, Target, Walmart, and Rite Aid.
  • Some could cause blindness, but no illnesses have been reported. 

The FDA has warned against or recalled a total of 34 eye drops this week, sold by major brands including Amazon, Walmart, CVS, Target, and Rite Aid.

Twenty-seven of the eye drops were recalled for their potential to cause infection or blindness, while the other seven are not FDA-approved. No cases of illness related to the products have been reported, according to the FDA.

On Wednesday, the FDA said that manufacturing company Kilitch Healthcare India Limited had voluntarily recalled 27 eye drop products. Business Insider previously reported that the agency warned against using, buying, or selling 26 drugs sold at Target, CVS, Walmart, and Rite Aid, as they had the potential to cause eye infections or even blindness, due to unsanitary conditions and bacteria found where the products were made.

Initially, the manufacturer was not named by the FDA, but according to an inspection report seen by Bloomberg, US health officials said that some workers at the factory in India went barefoot and made up test results.

Kilitch Healthcare India Limited did not immediately respond to BI's request for comment.

On October 30, the FDA added Equate Hydration PF Lubricant Eye Drop 10 ml sold by Walmart in stores and online to the list of eye drops consumers should avoid, taking the total of recalled drops to 27.

A Walmart spokesperson told Business Insider: "We have removed this product from our stores and implemented a sales block at our registers. Purchasers of the product are advised to discontinue use."

List of eye drops recalled by the FDA:

CVS Health:

  • Lubricant Eye Drops 15 ml (single pack)

  • Lubricant Eye Drops 15 ml (twin pack)

  • Lubricant Gel Drops 15 ml (single pack)

  • Lubricant Gel Drops 15 ml (twin pack)

  • Multi-Action Relief Drops 15 ml

  • Lubricating Gel Drops 10 ml

  • Lubricant Eye Drops 10 ml (single pack)

  • Lubricant Eye Drops 10 ml (twin pack)

  • Mild Moderate Lubricating Eye Drops 15 ml (single pack)

Rugby (Cardinal Health):

  • Lubricating Tears Eye Drops 15 ml

  • Polyvinyl Alcohol 1.4% Lubricating Eye Drops 15 ml

Leader (Cardinal Health):

  • Dry Eye Relief 10 ml

  • Lubricant Eye Drops 15 ml (single pack)

  • Lubricant Eye Drops 15 ml (twin pack)

  • Dry Eye Relief 15 ml

  • Eye Irritation Relief 15 ml

Rite Aid:

  • Lubricant Eye Drops 15 ml (twin pack)

  • Lubricant Eye Drops 10 ml (twin pack)

  • Gentle Lubricant Gel Eye Drops 15 ml

  • Lubricant Gel Drops 15 ml

  • Lubricating Gel Drops 10 ml

  • Multi-Action Relief Drops 15 ml

Target:

  • Up & Up Dry Eye Relief Lubricant Eye Drops 30 ml

  • Up & Up Extreme Relief Dry Eye 15 ml (single pack)

  • Up & Up Extreme Relief Dry Eye 30 ml (twin pack)

Velocity Pharma:

  • Lubricant Eye Drop 10 ml (triple pack)

Walmart:

  • Equate Hydration PF Lubricant Eye Drop 10 ml

Amazon is pulling 7 eye drops from its website

In an alert letter sent to Amazon CEO Andrew Jassy on Monday, the FDA said that seven types of eye drops sold on the company's website were classed as "new drugs" and had not been approved by the agency as "generally recognized as safe and effective."

Without prior agency approval, selling new drugs constitutes a violation of the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and United States Code, the letter said.

The eye drops were marketed as treatments for conditions including pink eye, eye floaters, cataracts, and dry eyes.

A spokesperson for Amazon told BI: "We require all products offered in our store to comply with applicable laws and regulations. The products in question have been investigated and are in the process of being removed."

Eye drops being pulled from Amazon:

  • Similasan Pink Eye Relief

  • The Goodbye Company Pink Eye

  • Can-C Eye Drops

  • Optique 1 Eye Drops

  • OcluMed Eye Drops

  • TRP Natural Eye Floaters Relief

  • Manzanilla Sophia Chamomile Herbal Eye Drops

EzriCare Artificial Tears and Delsam Pharma's Artificial Tears were recalled in February

Earlier this year, the FDA and the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention warned against two other eyecare products.

Consumers were told not to use EzriCare Artificial Tears and Delsam Pharma's Artificial Tears in February after they were found to be contaminated with bacteria.

Four deaths, 14 instances of vision loss, and four cases in which the eyeballs of patients who had used the drops had to be surgically removed were reported.

Following that recall, experts shared three ways to use eye drops safely with Business Insider: check the label to make sure the product isn't recalled or expired; make sure preservative-free products are single-use only; and know the signs of infection.

Read the original article on Insider