Business in Brief
We keep an eye on business announcements in ophthalmology – so you don’t have to
Aleksandra Jones | | 7 min read | News
Credit: Image Sourced from Unsplash.com
DORC has received 510(k) market clearance for its first surgical system approved for sub- retinal injections, EVA NEXUS, in the US. The company also showed the next generation of its two-dimensional cutter, TDC VELOCE, at ASRS. Link
Rayner has announced direct entry into the French cataract and refractive market, with ophthalmologists in France now gaining access to Rayner’s portfolio of RayOne and Sulcoflex IOLs, the AEON family of eye drops, and the RayONE digital platform for collecting Patient Reported Outcomes. Link
REGENXBIO has just opened its state-of-the-art, $65 million Manufacturing Innovation Center – gene therapy manufacturing facility – in Montgomery County, Maryland, US. Link
Bausch + Lomb is releasing an efficiency-enhancing upgrade for the Stellaris Elite vision enhancement system; the upgrade is first in a series that will include an increase to the maximum vacuum setting and an enhancement to the removable caps in the trocar/cannula system. Link
Ashvattha Therapeutics has presented data from a Phase I study of a self-administered anti- VEGF therapy for DME. D-4517.2 has shown potential as a therapy addressing DME patients’ treatment burden. Link
Samsara Vision has completed first US surgeries using its SING IMT (Smaller-Incision New- Generation Implantable Miniature Telescope) as part of the CONCERTO study evaluating safety and efficacy of the telescope in patients with late-stage AMD. Link
Research from BioTissue’s co-founder and CTO, Scheffer C.G. Tseng, has been recognized as the most cited lab investigation in the history of corneal research. Tseng’s work on the potential of the amniotic membrane in ophthalmology has received over 1,300 citations to date. Link
Studies featuring Notal Vision’s home-based, patient-operated OCT for monitoring wet AMD progression have shown the device’s efficacy and feasibility. Link
Oculis has announced the start of enrollment into its Phase III OPTIMIZE trial of OCS-01 for treating inflammation and pain after cataract surgery. Also, Phase III DIAMOND trial is investigating OCS-01 for DME treatment. Link
Harrow Health has announced the US launch of IOPIDINE 1%, and MAXITROL, with these medications now commercially available, and plans to commercialize MOXEZA 0.5% at a later date. Link
Occuity, developer of the PM1 Pachymeter that helps detect glaucoma, has opened a new funding round for new projects, including a handheld, non-contact axial length meter, which could aid myopia measurements in children. Link
Heidelberg Engineering has added new features to its anterior segment platform, ANTERION, in European markets. New and existing customers will now have access to epithelial thickness measurements, intuitive visualization to assess corneal ectasia, and automatic anterior chamber measurements (via a software update for existing users). Link
Ace Vision Group, an ophthalmic company developing innovative touchless lasers to patients with age-related vision loss, has appointed Elizabeth Yeu as its Chief Strategic Advisor. Link
Reichert Technologies celebrated the 100th anniversary of the first phoropter. The refracting instrument, released in 1922, has revolutionized eye care. The celebrations were held earlier this month at the company’s Depew, New York, US location. Link
Rayner has entered into a partnership with Belgian surgical instrument manufacturer, HASA Optix, and acquired a stake in the business. HASA instruments will be available from Rayner in selected countries, including the US, later in 2022. Link
Quantel Medical has launched its Nd:YAG laser, Capsulo, a fully integrated, easy to use and highly versatile laser platform, enabling efficient and accurate capsulotomy and iridotomy treatments. Link
LENSAR’s ALLY Adaptive Cataract Treatment System has received US FDA clearance this week. ALLY enables a completely sterile FLACS procedure in any OR or surgical suite. Link
Aurion Biotech, a company working on a cell therapy to treat corneal edema secondary to endothelial dysfunction, has appointed Michael Goldstein as its President and Chief Medical Officer. Goldstein’s previous appointments include Ocular Therapeutix, Applied Genetic Technologies Corp, and Eleven Biotherapeutics. Link
iSTAR presented two-year safety and efficacy results in a meta-analysis of its STAR-I, STAR-II and STAR-III clinical trials for MINIject, a supraciliary MIGS device. The two-year results showed efficacy and favorable safety outcomes in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma. Link
Coave Therapeutics and ABL have announced a strategic collaboration to develop and manufacture an AAV-based gene therapy. Link
ZEISS is celebrating more than 500,000 planned US-based surgeries using its VERACITY Surgical platform, which increases workflow efficiency by integrating patient data from EHRs and diagnostic hardware for automated surgical planning accessed from any location. Link
Biogen and Samsung Bioepis’ BYOOVIZ (ranibizumab-nuna), a biosimilar referencing LUCENTIS (ranibizumab), has been launched in the US. Priced 40 percent lower than LUCENTIS, BYOOVIZ provides an equally effective and more affordable treatment option to patients suffering from retinal disorders. Link
The FDA has approved Novartis’ BEOVU (brolucizumab-dbll) 6 mg for the treatment of DME. It is the second FDA-approved indication for BEOVU, the first being the treatment of wet AMD in 2019. Link
Horizon Therapeutics has shared data from the Phase III trial of UPLIZNA, a new NMOSD treatment. Data from 142 subjects show the treatment’s effectiveness among patients of various genetic make-ups. Link
Sight Sciences has announced 12-month outcomes in the GEMINI study, which show that 360° canaloplasty and 180° trabeculotomy performed with the company’s OMNI Surgical System at the time of cataract surgery significantly reduces unmedicated mean diurnal IOP and medication use for at least 12 months. Link
Oertli Instrumente has acquired Swiss distributor Domedics, which has given the company direct access to Swiss, Austrian, and German markets. Now, Domedics has turned into Oertli Ophthalmedic Schweiz, a subsidiary of the global Oertli brand. Link
Haag-Streit has launched its fourth Slit Lamp Competition, inviting eyecare professionals across the world to showcase their slit lamp imaging skills. Criteria include image quality, technical execution, and disease interest, with prizes being awarded for the first three places. The competition closes on August 12. Link
Research supporting cataract surgeons and other eye professionals in helping patients prepare for surgery recommends prescribing a pre-surgical preparation kit, such as Bruder Healthcare’s Sx Pre-Surgical Patient Prep Kit, which helps patients combat fear and anxiety while giving them agency and autonomy. Link
Dopavision, a company developing digital therapeutics for childhood myopia, has appointed Mark S. Wuttke as its CEO. Wuttke previously worked on developing and commercializing ophthalmic products at Novartis. Link
Lumenis, an energy-based medical device company developing eye care applications, has announced that its light-based treatment of dry eye, OptiLight, has won the 2022 MedTech Breakthrough Award for Best New Technology Solution for Ophthalmology. Link
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