NO165818B - AT LEAST PARTY COLORED CONTACT LENSES AND THEIR PREPARATION. - Google Patents

Abstract

Contact lenses comprising polymeric lens materials are coloured by reactive dyestuffs covalently bonded to monomer units of the polymer backbone, said dyestuffs being reactive dyes capable of forming ether linkages with cellulose, and being reactive with hydroxyl, amino, amido or mercapto groups present in a hydrogel polymer to form the covalent bond therewith. The invention is of particular interest in the area of "soft" contact lenses (hydrogel lenses).

Description

The present invention relates to at least partially colored contact lenses. The invention also relates to a method for their production.

In particular, the invention applies to contact lenses comprising polymeric lens materials in which reactive dyes are covalently bound to monomer units in the main chain of the polymer. The invention is of particular interest in the field of the so-called hydrophilic or "soft" contact lenses, usually called hydrogel lenses.

Many of the known methods for coloring plastic materials are unsuitable for practical coloring of contact lenses, especially for hydrophilic contact lenses. For example, the methods by which a colorant is dispersed in a plastic by dissolving or dispersing a dye or pigment in a monomer precursor or in the polymer matrix cannot be used to obtain satisfactory water-absorbable materials. The reason for this is that water induces a migration of the dye inside the plastic material and a washing out of the dye on the outside of it. This migration can be further accelerated during heat sterilization treatments as commonly used with hydrophilic lenses, since the heating process in most cases expands the polymeric matrix. The most common method for manufacturing hard contact lenses, in which the lens blanks are colored, will not be usable for manufacturing soft lenses.

An alternative method for coloring plastic materials is the use of printing, transfer or coating methods. According to this method, a coloring agent is made to stick to the plastic surface. This method is also unsuitable for dyeing water-absorbable plasters, which are used, for example, for the production of hydrophilic contact lenses. If a plastic material colored using this method is allowed to swell in water, the applied layer of dye does not swell as much as the plastic itself. Therefore, the dye will be separated from the plastic surface. In all cases, a simple dye transfer method does not remove the problem of leaching and will always be limited by the degree of physical adhesion of the dye to the surface.

A number of methods are described in the literature whereby all or part of a soft contact lens is painted or pressed using a tool such as a brush. For example, it is in "Contact Lens Forum", vol. 3, March 1978, pages 13-17, described a method in which the surface of a lens is colored by a chemical printing process. However, this method is not entirely satisfactory, as it is noted that the color tends to fade after several autoclave treatments.

The use of water-soluble dyes is also unsatisfactory for the production of many contact lenses in particular. Water-soluble dyes will wash out during repeated heat sterilization treatments. Furthermore, water-soluble dyes can stain the eye tissue permanently in case of long-term contact with the eye. Thus, the method described in the "American Journal of Optometry and Physiological Optics", vol. 54, pages 160-164 (1977), "Methods of Tinting Soflens® Contact Lenses", do not provide a solution to the problem of making tinted soft contact lenses in practice.

In addition to the problems that exist when using hydrophilic plastic material for the production of these lenses, a further complication is introduced by the lens's own dimension.

Conventional hard contact lenses, which are generally made from mixtures with methyl methacrylate as the main comonomer, generally have a diameter smaller than the diameter of the cornea of the eye. It is therefore possible to use a lens that is colored all over. In contrast, soft contact lenses often have a diameter that is larger than that of the cornea. Because of this, a uniformly colored soft contact lens would show up quite prominently against the white sclera of the eye. Therefore, to produce a contact lens that appears neutral, it would be necessary to have a colored central area and a clear outer perimeter.

As indicated in US-PS 4,252,421, the production of such lenses leads to difficulties in fabrication. They must not emit color from the central part to the outer clear part, the colored and clear area must also be concentric and easily align during production. Finally, it is crucial that there is no leaching of color either into the tear fluid or into the sterilisation solution.

US-PS 4,252,421 describes a method of making soft contact lenses which contain a colored central core and an outer lens element which is usually clear. The colored central core is formed from a colored button, which in turn is polymerized from a monomer mixture comprising a color as comonomer. The water-insoluble color or dye is thus part of the polymer's main chain. Alternatively, a water-insoluble dye can be added to the comonomer mixture and this combination polymerized, whereby the dye is introduced into the polymer matrix. Due to the insolubility of the dye, it will not stain or release from the polymerized button. Two methods for the production of contact lenses are also described. The first method involves polymerizing the colored button, placing the colored button in a mold and pouring a hydrogel comonomer mixture around the colored button and polymerizing this mixture. An alternative method of making the lens is to polymerize the clear outer button first and then form a centrally located opening through the button. The comonomer mixture comprising the dye is then placed in the opening and polymerized.

This method suffers from a number of significant disadvantages. In relation to the method in which a water-insoluble dye is only mixed into the polymer matrix, the difficulties indicated above will be present. In contrast to the uniform composition of a conventional hydrophilic contact lens, the lenses produced according to US-PS 4,252,421 are a combination of hard lens materials and soft or hydrogel lens materials. In addition, the production of these lenses requires a number of separate fabrication and polymerization steps. In addition, lenses of this type must be specially prepared for each prescription. The supplier of contact lenses must therefore have a significant inventory to cover the range of prescriptions and colors that are normally desired. Finally, the use of the combination of hard-soft lenses would generally lead to a wrinkling or shrinking of the edges when drying, causing inconvenience to the wearer.

US-PS 4,157,892 describes a method for dyeing water-absorbable plastics comprising four steps. The first step is the preparation of the coupling monomer or coupling polymer. A polymerization radical is introduced into a coupling agent to obtain a polymerizable coupling monomer, from which a coupling polymer can be prepared. One of the couplers obtained in the first step is then copolymerized or polymerized with a water-absorbable plastic in the form of a monomer or a polymer in the presence of a polymerization initiator to produce a water-absorbable plastic capable of developing color. The material produced in this way is formed into an intermediate product with the same dimensions as in the desired final product, such as a water-absorbable contact lens. Finally, the intermediate product is colored by immersing the lens in an aqueous solution of a diazonium double salt that acts as a developer. Immersion is continued for as long as is required to cause swelling of the intermediate, allowing the diazo component to penetrate the plastic. The solution is then adjusted to the optimum pH value to bring about a coupling reaction and allow the azo dye to develop its color on the final product. The production of partially colored intermediate products is possible by applying ultraviolet radiation to the parts of the plastic that are not to be colored, whereby the diazo components in these parts are broken down.

This method again has the disadvantage that it is complicated. The process for producing the material in which the color will later be developed must be carried out in a series of separate steps, and care must be taken to prevent premature development of the azo color in the lens material. Furthermore, the azo dye precursor is dispersed through the lens material, which could lead to differences in color intensity depending on the thickness of the lens material. In order to provide colored lenses for a wide variety of prescriptions, it would again be necessary for the supplier to maintain a large inventory. In addition, it is clear that this method is only suitable for use with specially prepared lens materials, including a coupler. Therefore, it would not be possible to use the method taught in US-PS 4,157,892 with conventional hydrophilic lens materials in common use. Finally, use of the type of couplers described in this reference would likely result in poor quality polymer materials compared to materials currently used for this purpose.

In GB-A 1 004 424 dyes which are usually used for dyeing cellulose textile materials are described which are also suitable for dyeing contact lenses. This teaching is made concrete by the reference that good results can be achieved with azo, kyper and reactive dyes. The only reactive dye specifically mentioned is Cibakron blue 3G or Prokion brilliant blue RS. This reactive dye can form a sulfonic acid ester bond with cellulose. However, such a sulfonic acid ester bond is not, in contrast to, for example, an ether bond, inert to hydrolytic influences, for example caused by sterilizing solutions.

Furthermore, GB-A 1 004 424 does not refer to the fact that for the coloring of contact lenses, temperatures up to 40 "C are not only sufficient, but also advantageous. Dyes such as the proposed Cibakron blue 3G thus usually do not bind to contact lenses at temperatures up to 40° C, it only binds at higher temperatures At temperatures up to 40° C, there is practically no splitting or deformation of the hydrogel substrate, while at higher temperatures such damage to the lenses can occur.

An object of the present invention is therefore to avoid the problems associated with the previously known technique.

In particular, it is an aim of the invention to provide contact lenses which will retain their color over long periods of time and repeated chemical and/or heat sterilization treatments.

According to this, the invention relates to an at least partially colored contact lens consisting of a copolymeric hydrogel material containing hydroxyl, amino, amido or mercapto groups, and the lens is characterized by at least one reactive dye with the general formula:

or

there

D is the residue of an organic dye;

R is a divalent organic electron-withdrawing group capable of causing withdrawal of the electrons from the carbon atoms of the C=CH2~ or CH-CB^ groups in the formulas (I) and (II) to thereby activate them;

X is hydrogen or halogen; and

Y is a leaving group;

is covalently bound externally to the polymer skeleton via ether, thioether, amino or amldo groups.

As mentioned, a further object of the invention is to provide a method for the production of a contact lens that appears completely natural when worn on the eye, i.e. lenses with a central colored part that covers the cornea and clear edges over the parts of the lens that cover the tendon sheath, and the invention thus also relates to a method for producing lenses of the above type and this method is characterized by the reaction between the lens material and at least one reactive dye with the formulas (I) or (II) being carried out at a temperature of up to 40°C and then by removing unreacted dye from the lens material.

A number of polymers are suitable for use in the manufacture of the new lenses. The only requirement is that the monomers contain at least one of the functional groups that can react with a reactive dye, either before or after the polymerization of the monomers to form the polymer.

The composition of the lens material itself can vary within wide limits, the only requirement is that there is at least one component present in the monomer mixture which will provide the polymer with the desired functional groups outside the main chain. Particularly suitable as monomers for this purpose are hydroxyalkyl esters of polymerizable unsaturated acids. Among such esters, hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) has been widely used. Lenses made from such materials are, for example, described in US-PS 2,976,576 and Re 27,401.

In general, however, any polymeric material that is suitable for use in the manufacture of a contact lens can also be used in the manufacture of the colored lenses according to the invention, provided that at least one of the monomeric components forming the material contains the functional group outside the main chain that can react with the reactive dye molecule. Therefore, the present invention can use a wide range of known polymeric lens materials. This makes it possible to produce colored contact lenses according to the invention from a wide variety of materials that are already available, as well as new contact lens materials that can be developed or marketed.

In addition to hydroxyalkyl esters of unsaturated acids, the following monomeric materials may serve as typical examples of comonomers which may be used in conjunction with monomers providing the required functional groups: acrylic and methacrylic acids, alkyl and cycloalkyl acrylates and methacrylates, N-( 1,1-dimethyl-3-oxobutyl)acrylamide and heterocyclic N-vinyl compounds containing a carbonyl functionality close to the nitrogen in the ring, especially N-vinyl lactams such as N-vinylpyrrolidone. Furthermore, one or more cross-linking agents can be used, as known in advance, to provide a polymeric material with optimal properties. Examples of such cross-linking agents are trimethylol-propane trimethacrylate, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) and diethylene glycol bis-allyl carbonate.

Useful reactive dyes are usually called "reactive dyes that form ether bonds" insofar as the reactive group or groups in this class of dyes react with cellulose to form an ether bond, as opposed to, for example, an ester bond. Such reactive dyes which form ether bonds are generally described in "Fibre-Reactive Dyes", Chapter VI, by W.F. Beech, SAF International Inc., New York (1970).

This class of reactive dyes is believed to react with hydroxyl, amino, amido or mercapto groups present in the hydrogel polymer network of contact lens materials, primarily by nucleophilic addition to form a covalent bond with it.

A wide range of commercially available dyes, which are reactive by means of nucleophilic substitution, are suitable for use in the manufacture of the contact lenses according to the invention. In addition, just about any desired hue or color can be achieved by using a particular reactive dye or combination of reactive dyes.

Thus, dyes containing an activated double bond which can add to the functional group outside the main chain of the polymer can be used according to the invention. For example, a bond without the main chain which is activated by bridging links such as a -SO2-, -SO- or -CO group is particularly suitable for use according to the invention. In the same way, dyes with functional groups that can participate in addition reactions with double bonds outside the main chain in the polymer can be used.

Among the types of reactive dyes which are suitable for use according to the invention, the following general class can be mentioned: reactive dyes containing vinylsulfone precursors, such as p-sulfatoethylsulfonyl-, p-sulfatoethylsulfonamido-, p<->hydroxyethylsulfonyl- and p <->hydroxyethylsulfonamido substituents, as well as suitable derivatives thereof, dyes containing acryloylamino-, p<->chloropropionylamino- and p<->sulfatopropionylamino- and related reactive groups, dyes containing p-phenylsulfonylpropionylamino groups, dyes containing P-sulfato - or p-chloroethylsulfamoyl groups, chloroacetyl dyes, a-bromo-acryloyl dyes, and a wide range of other reactive dyes that have been developed for use in the dyeing of natural and synthetic fibers, especially for the dyeing of cellulose and wool and that function by nucleophilic addition. Although there are many examples in the field of the use of reactive dyes with textile fiber materials, the use of these dyes for the production of colored contact lenses has not been described until now.

Some typical examples of commercially available dyes suitable for use according to the invention are: Dye-S02-CH2-CH2-0-S03Na ("Remazol"), dye-S02NHCH2CH20S03Na ("Levafix"), dye-NH-OC-CH2CH2S02C6H5

("Solidazole"), dye

("Lanasol"), dyestuff dye-NHCH2OH ("Calcobond") Similarly in the field of the invention is the use of dyestuffs containing more than one reactive group capable of forming a covalent bond by a nucleophilic addition with hydroxyl -, amino, amido or mercapto groups in the hydrogel polymer network in contact lens materials.

Reactive dyes capable of forming a covalent bond with hydroxy, amino, amido or mercapto groups present in the hydrogel material of the contact lenses are those having the general formulas: or

there

D is the residue in an organic dye,

R is a divalent organic electron-withdrawing group that can cause electron depletion from the carbon atoms in C=CH2~ or

the CH-CH2 groups with the formulas (I) and (II), thus activating the same,

X is hydrogen or halogen, and

Y is a leaving group, or mixtures thereof.

The residue D can advantageously be the residue from an azo, phthalocyanine, azomethine, nitro or anthraquinone dye.

The reactive dyes of formula (II) will eliminate HY in the reaction media and thus form intermediate products of formula (I), which then react by nucleophilic addition.

The divalent group -R- is advantageously attached directly to an aromatic core carbon of D, or is attached thereto by means of an aliphatic group such as an alkylene group, for example a lower alkylene group. Most preferably, -R is directly bonded to a core carbon atom from D.

Suitable divalent R groups are -CO-, -SO2-, -SO-, -NHCO-, -NHS02-, -SO2NH- and the like. Most preferred -R- is -SO2-,

-SO 2 NH-, -CO or -NHCO-.

When X is halogen, chlorine or bromine is most preferred.

Suitable leaving groups Y are -Cl-, -Br, -OH, di-lower

alkylamino,

-S02-phenyl, -0S03_-Z<+>

where Z is a cation, -0S03R! or -SO 2 R 1 where R 1 in each case is alkyl, aryl, aralkyl or alkaryl.

When R 1 is alkyl, it is advantageously alkyl with 1 to 6 carbon atoms, preferably alkyl with 1 to 4 carbon atoms, including for example methyl, ethyl, isopropyl, butyl and the like.

When R 1 is aryl, it is preferably phenyl or naphthyl. When R 1 is alkaryl, it is preferably lower alkyl substituted phenyl such as tolyl or xylyl, and when R 1 is aralkyl, it is preferably lower alkylene phenyl such as benzyl or phenethyl.

The reactive dyes of formula (I) and (II) are the reactive dyes that form a covalent bond with the hydroxyl, amino, amido or mercapto groups present in a hydrogel polymer network in an aqueous medium with a pH of 9 or greater and a temperature of up to 40°C. Such reactive dyes of formulas (I) or (II) can stain hydrogel contact lenses without any significant degradation or deformation of the hydrogel substrate, due to the mild reaction conditions.

The invention provides new colored lenses with exceptional color fastness and color uniformity. According to the requirements of a particular case, the dye can be applied to both surfaces of a lens or to only one surface. In addition, the lens can be colored only on a special part. It is thus possible without difficulty to produce lenses with, for example, colored central parts and clear edges, or with a round colored part corresponding to the iris. The method can also be used, for example, for applying identification marks to lenses, such as to indicate the concave or convex surface of a flexible lens.

Although staining is carried out by bringing one or both surfaces of the lens into contact with an aqueous solution of the dye, the inner parts of the lens will also be colored to some extent due to diffusion of the dye during the reaction time.

In general, the formation of a covalent bond between the lens material and the reactive dye is carried out by a simple contact between the dye mixture, such as a weakly basic aqueous solution, and the lens material until the reaction is complete. In a case where both surfaces of a lens are to be colored, both surfaces of the lens are brought into contact with a mixture of the reactive dye. The color tone is regulated by the time of contact with the color mixture, as well as by the reactivity of the eye with the lens surface. When it is desired to apply dye only to a surface, or to a particular part of the surface, the manufactured lens can be placed in a holder or in a mold and the reactive dye mixture applied only to a particular part or parts of the lens surface. Considering the complicated methods commonly used in the field, this simple mechanical method of coloring contact lenses is a huge advance compared to known methods.

Deep, true coloring can also be easily achieved if desired, for example so that the lens has a light transmission of 90* or less in the desired visible color range, and essentially free of opacity, over the colored part of the lens.

After the reaction between the lens material and the reactive dye is complete, unreacted dye can be removed using any suitable solvent. The choice of solvent for extraction or purification naturally depends on the solubility of the particular dye. For most of the dyes currently used, lower alcohols such as methanol are suitable solvents. After the washing process, the colored lens is freed from traces of solvent, for example by boiling in distilled water.

For economic reasons, it is preferred to treat the already polymerized material with the dye preparation. However, it would also be possible to treat monomers such as HEMA with reactive dyes before polymerisation, and then polymerise the reactive dye-monomer units.

Due to the formation of a covalent bond between the polymeric material that forms the contact lens and the reactive dye, the lenses according to the invention exhibit a remarkable color fastness to all types of sterilization treatment usually used for contact lenses, such as chemical, enzymatic and heat sterilization . Furthermore, since the coloring material is applied directly to the surface or surfaces of the lens, the tint is independent of the lens thickness. This is a marked difference compared to lenses from plastic buttons in which the pigment is enclosed in the polymer matrix, since the intensity of the color tone in this case is directly dependent on the thickness of the lens. This applies, for example, to the contact lenses manufactured according to US-PS 4 157 892.

Since the method according to the invention enables the introduction of the coloring material at any time during the production of the colored lenses, it is also possible to color lenses after filling a special prescription with conventional clear lenses. Thus, it is not necessary to keep a large stock of pre-colored lenses, a significant disadvantage of many of the known methods of producing colored lenses. After fitting conventional clear lenses, the color can be introduced as a final step before delivery to the patient. Alternatively, previously prescribed lenses could then be customer colored according to the wearer's wishes. Since the range of polymeric materials which are suitable for use according to the invention is sufficiently broad to include essentially all lens materials in use at the moment, the method according to the invention has an almost universal applicability.

Another advantage of the method according to the invention is the large reduction in manufacturing costs for the contact lenses according to the invention, compared to known methods for manufacturing lenses containing at least one central part that is colored. Suitable reactive dyes are readily available and the ease of application of these dyes to the lens materials makes it unnecessary to use complicated polymerization processes or equipment.

Tests on the oxygen permeability of lenses treated according to the invention have shown that there is essentially no change in the oxygen permeability after treatment, which can be seen from the following table:

Another advantage of the lenses according to the invention is that most of the dyes used for coloring tend to absorb ultraviolet radiation, especially of the wavelengths that have been shown to be harmful to the eye, for example in "Optical Management", " Ultraviolet Radiation and the Ocular Media", January 1981, pages 21-33. In particular, it has been reported that ultraviolet radiation can be directly linked to the development of cataracts.

The invention can be better understood with the help of the following examples.

Example 1

Colored lenses that are completely blue on both sides

A stock solution which is stable for at least 5 weeks is prepared by dissolving 0.1 g of a dye with the formula:

in 10 ml of 0.001M HC1 solution. A clear HEA lens is immersed in l.OM sodium carbonate solution. The lens soaked in sodium carbonate solution is then placed in 0.11 ml of the stock solution. 4 ml of 1.0 M sodium carbonate solution is then added and lentils are allowed to remain in the solution for 53 minutes. The colored lens is then neutralized with a buffered salt solution (pH = 7.0). The colored lens is then extracted with methanol as solvent, in a solvent extraction apparatus, until no more dye molecules are washed out. This can be easily determined using a spectrophotometer. After the extraction process, the colored lentils are boiled in distilled water for an hour to get rid of traces of methanol. The colored lens is then stored in a saline buffer solution.

The transmittance of the colored lens at the wavelength of 600 nm is 68*.

Example 2

Colored lens that is completely aquamarine colored on both sides

A stock solution which is stable for at least 3 weeks is prepared by dissolving 0.1 g of a dye with the formula:

in 10 ml of 0.001M HCl solution. The lens, which has been immersed in 1.0 M sodium carbonate for 10 minutes, is placed in 1 ml of

the stock resolution. Then 4 ml of 1.0M sodium carbonate solution is added and the lens is immersed for the desired time. The procedures for washing, extracting and rinsing the lens are the same as in example 1.

The transmittance of the colored lenses at wavelength 670 nm is 80* and 70* respectively for immersions of 2 and 4 hours.

Example 3

Colored lenses that are completely brown on both sides

Three stock solutions are needed for this procedure, all of which are stable for at least 6 weeks.

A) 0.0512 g of a dye with the formula:

in 5 ml of 0.001M HCl solution.

B) 0.0574 g of a dye with the formula: in 5 ml of 0.001M HCl solution. C) 0.0291 g of a dye with the formula:

in 5 ml of 0.001M HCl solution.

The lens, which has been immersed in 1.0 M sodium carbonate solution for 10 minutes, is placed in the following amounts of the stock solutions: 0.18 ml of A, 0.12 ml of B and 0.2 ml of C. 1 ml 1, 0M sodium carbonate solution is then added and allowed to stand for 1 hour. The transmittance of the colored lenses at the wavelengths 400, 490 and 605 nm is 45*, 51* and 60* respectively.

Example 4

Colored lens that is completely green on both sides

The lens, which has been immersed in 1.0M sodium carbonate for 10 minutes, is placed in 0.18 ml of solution C and 0.12 ml of solution B prepared according to Example 3. Then 1 ml of 1.0M sodium carbonate solution is added and the lens is allowed to soak in the solution for 30 minutes. The transmittance of the colored lens at the wavelengths 580 and 385 nm is 64* and 58* respectively.

Example 5

Lens that is colored on one side with a clear edge

The coloring procedures are the same as in examples 1 to 4. The only difference is that the clear lens is in a holder. A suitable color solution is then poured into a mold, instead of immersing the lens in the color solution. Only the area to be colored is then brought into contact with the color solution. The final step in the procedure is the same as in example 1.

The manufacture of a holder suitable for the manufacture of the particular type of partially tinted lens desired is a simple mechanical task. One type of holder which has been found useful for making clear edge lenses can be described as follows: The holder has three interlocking pieces. The bottom piece is a dome on which the lens is placed. The curved surface of the dome has a diameter that corresponds to the diameter of the lens to be colored. The top piece acts as a reservoir for the color solution and has an elastic seal. This gasket forms a seal on the surface of the lens at the edge of the area to be tinted. The third piece is a housing for the reservoir and gasket assembly. The entire holder is inserted into a clamp to hold the composition firmly in place during dyeing.

The lens, which has been immersed in 1.0M sodium carbonate for 10 minutes, is placed in position on the dome. The reservoir part of the holder is placed and clamped. The reservoir is filled with the desired concentration of dye and sodium carbonate solution. This solution is left in contact with the lens until the desired tint is achieved. The reservoir is cleaned with water until all traces of dye solution have been removed. The lens is then removed from the holder.

Equally good results can be achieved by, for example, using dyes with the following structures:

Many of these dyes are readily available on the market, and dyes of this type have been known in the field for many years.

Claims (13)

1. An at least partially colored contact lens consisting of a copolymer hydrogel material containing hydroxyl, amino, amido or mercapto groups, characterized in that at least one reactive dye with the general formula: or there D is the residue of an organic dye; R is a divalent organic electron-withdrawing group capable of causing withdrawal of the electrons from the carbon atoms of the C=CH2~ or CH-CB^ groups in the formulas (I) and (II) to thereby activate them; X is hydrogen or halogen; and Y is a leaving group; is covalently bound externally to the polymer skeleton via ether, thioether, amino or amido groups. 2. Contact lens according to claim 1, characterized in that the reactive dye residue, bound to copolymer hydrogel, has the formula: or where D, R and X have the meaning specified under claim 1. 3. Contact lens according to claim 2, characterized in that D is the residue of an azo, phthalocyanine, azomethine, nltro or anthraquinone dye. 4. Contact lens according to claim 2, characterized in that R is -CO-, -SO2-, -SO-, NHCO- or -NHS02-. 5. Contact lens according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a colored central part and a clear ring-shaped edge. 6. Method for producing a contact lens according to claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it comprises carrying out the reaction between the lens material and the at least one reactive dye with formula (I) or (II) at a temperature of up to 40°C, and then remove unreacted dye from the lens material. 7. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that the reaction is carried out in an aqueous medium with a pH value of at least 9. 8. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that the lens material is in the form of a contact lens. 9. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that the reactive dye is applied only to part of the lens. 10. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that a reactive dye is used with the formula: or there D, R, X and Y are as stated under claim 1. 11. Process according to claim 10, characterized in that compounds are used where D is the residue of an azo, phthalocyanine, azomethine, nitro or anthraquinone dye. 12. Method according to claim 10, characterized in that compounds are used where R is -CO-, -SO2-, -NHCO- or -NHS02-. 13. Method according to claim 10, characterized in that compounds are used where Y is Cl, Br, OH, dialkylamino, SO2-, phenyl, 0SO3~Z<+> where Z is a cation, OSC^R-1 or 0SO2Ri where R^ is alkyl, aryl, aralkyl or alkaryl.