EW Weekly, March 27, 2020

- Study: Risk of COVID-19 ocular transmission is low
- Physician payment terms extended for EYLEA injections due to COVID-19
- Emergency authorization given for molecular COVID-19 diagnostic assay
- Production expanded for genetic test kits for new coronavirus detection
- Aldeyra to begin screening RASP inhibitors for potential activity to treat COVID-19
- Pivotal trial for dry AMD/GA treatment Zimura delayed due to COVID-19
- COVID-19: News You Can Use
- Product News
- Between 2012 and 2019, private equity-backed acquisitions of ophthalmology and optometry practices grew rapidly, and some platform companies have already been sold or recapitalized to new investors, reported Evan Chen, BS, and coresearchers in their cross-sectional study of private acquisition and investment data. A total of 228 private equity acquisitions in the U.S. were researched using acquisition and financial investment data from six financial databases, four industry news outlets, and publicly available press releases. Among the 228 practices were 1,466 clinical locations and 2,146 ophthalmologists or optometrists acquired by 29 private equity-backed platform companies. The acquisition rate grew rapidly during the study time period, with 42 practices acquired between 2012 and 2016 and 186 from 2017 to 2019. Three platform companies were sold or recapitalized, with a median holding period of 3.5 years. The acquisitions took place in 40 states, with most private equity firms developing multistate platform companies. The study appears in Ophthalmology.
- Use of a custom silicone artificial iris implantation was moderately risky but effective at lowering light and glare sensitivity and improving ocular cosmesis, reported Clémence Bonnet, MD, and coresearchers. Their prospective, consecutive case series included a review of medical records of 19 patients implanted with the artificial iris and followed for a year. Corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA), IOP, endothelial cell count, surgical complications, secondary interventions, and adverse events were among the safety measures analyzed. The CDVA with glare, subjective day and night glare, and subjective cosmetic appearance were among the efficacy measures. Among the 20 included eyes, the CDVA improved in 13 and got worse in six. The endothelial cell count decreased from 1,918 cells/mm2 to 1,405 cells/mm2. The eight eyes with postop complications included IOP elevations (four eyes), corneal decompensations (two eyes), cystoid macular edema (one eye), and device dislocation (one eye). Four eyes had secondary surgical interventions, including two adverse events (one glaucoma surgery and one device dislocation). The CDVA with glare improved from 1.5 to 0.7 logMAR (P<0.01), and the mean daytime glare lowered from 8.9 to 2.7. Night glare decreased from 7.9 to 2.5. Mean cosmesis improved from 2.2 to 8.8 (P<0.01). The research is published in the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
- Heidelberg Engineering reintroduced its HRT3 Rostock Cornea Module to the global market to offer in vivo corneal confocal microscopy.
- Topcon Healthcare is offering all of its slit lamp customers a free breath shield to fit onto their instrument in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Customers must register online to receive it. It is available while supplies last.
This issue of EyeWorld Weekly was edited by Stacy Jablonski and Vanessa Caceres.
EyeWorld Weekly (ISSN 1089-0319), a digital publication of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS), is published every Friday, distributed by email, and posted live on Friday.
Medical Editors: Eric Donnenfeld, MD, Chief Medical Editor; Rosa Braga-Mele, MD, Cataract Editor; Clara Chan, MD, Cornea Editor; Nathan Radcliffe, MD, Glaucoma Editor; and Vance Thompson, MD, Refractive Editor
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