- The most recent OIS webinar recently dropped, with a deep focus on myopia.
- Myopia is a growing concern in ophthalmology as rates of the condition increase.
Ask any ophthalmologist or optometrist about the great issues in eye care today, and the answer is likely to be myopia. Around the world, and particularly in East Asia, rates of the condition are increasing exponentially. Indeed, according to some estimates, half of the global population could well be myopic by 2050.
We have recently covered the issue in great detail and the Ophthalmology Innovation Summit (OIS) is also giving myopia considerable (and deserved) attention. The Summit’s latest webinar on the disease, the Myopia Innovation Showcase, was streamed on April 29, 2021, and featured all that we have come to expect from the OIS. The webinar was opened by Dr. Joe Rappon, the chief medical officer at SightGlass Vision (Dallas, Texas, USA).
Dr. Rappon’s journey with myopia began when he was 11-years-old — and his first eye exam spurred him to become an eye doctor. After a brief historical overview of the condition, Dr. Rappon described myopia as an accelerating problem, as 1 in 2 people will be myopic by 2050, and 1 billion will be highly myopic. He emphasized that a myopic eye is not a healthy one, with increased risk for glaucoma and retinal detachment, among other sight-threatening conditions.
Imagine What You Could Do With $200 Billion
The first presenter was Matt Oerding, board chairman of the Global Myopia Awareness Coalition (Irving, Texas, USA). His presentation focused on the market overview of myopia, which showed a total addressable market of over 55 million children aged between 6-17, and this segment is experiencing significant growth due to increasing incidence. By 2050, Oerding reports that there will be an over $200 billion market opportunity, which can be achieved by focusing on public awareness, regulatory approval and better training.
Next up was CEO of Sight Glass Vision (Palo Alto, California, USA), Thomas Chalberg. In an effort to deliver innovative, science-based treatments that address the myopia pandemic in children worldwide, the company is developing diffusion optics technology that uses light scattering to manage myopia. Chalberg reported that in one study, up to 65% of subjects reported a change in baseline cycloplegic spherical equivalent refractive error at 12 months.
Cross-linking Sounds like a Cool Kid’s Game
Next was iVeena Delivery Systems (Salt Lake City, Utah, USA), a clinical-stage ophthalmology company that develops non-surgical, non-invasive, pharmacologic innovations. Represented by President and Founder Dr. Bala Ambati, he described how his company is advancing myopia treatment development with the IVMED-85 for pharmacologic corneal and scleral cross-linking. This is designed to increase lysyl oxidase modulates by flattening the cornea, stiffening the sclera and reducing axial elongation.
Following this was CEO and Founder of Nova-Sight (Airport City, Israel), Ran Yam. He spoke about Nova-Sight’s work on eye-tracking pediatric solutions, and in particular, its Active Glass myopia control wearable solutions, which features eye elongation monitoring, automated and objective visual acuity testing, and is designed to be simple enough for a child to operate.
Patrick Johnson was the next presenter to speak in his capacity as the chief business officer of Sydnexis (Del Mar, California, USA). Johnson described how his company believes that treating myopia with low-dose atropine has been shown to slow progression. He said Sydnexis has a best-in-class product to achieve this, while maximizing stability and tolerance: the SYD-101 eyedrop, which is designed to be applied nightly.
Kubota Vision (Seattle, Washington, USA) was next up, represented by Founder and CEO Dr. Ryo Kubota. His company is developing myopia-focused smart glasses, the Kubota Glass, which is currently in the clinical trial and product engineering stage. This solution is based on peripheral myopic defocus and uses an augmented reality optical system to achieve stimulation designed to enable the retina to move forward.
Catch Myopia Early in Kids
Dr. Andrei Tkatchenko, PhD, spoke for Dioptragen, a drug development company targeting myopia (New York, New York, USA). The company is also studying atropine as a tool in mitigating myopia and is looking at six drugs (specifically, eyedrops) that have shown particular efficacy. In particular, LE420 is already undergoing phase 1 studies involving up to 20 subjects and is expected to move to phase 2 soon.
The penultimate presenter was Dr. Barry Linder, president and CEO of Reopia Optics (Bellport, New York, USA). His company’s mantra is to intervene as early as possible in a child’s development of myopia to leverage the growing eye’s elasticity by modifying the visual input with proprietary optics. To that end, the company is working in two directions (decreasing myopia-caused stimulus and increasing myopia suppression signals), and is seeking initial funding.
Last but not least was Euclid Systems (Herndon, Virginia, USA), represented by Vice President of Global Marketing, Nitin Jain. He spoke about his company’s focus on orthokeratology which led to the development of the Euclid Emerald, a multi-curve lens. Designed to be applied comfortably to a child’s eye regardless of its shape, Jain said the lens was at the forefront of myopia treatment.
Editor’s Note: The Ophthalmology Innovation Summit (OIS) Myopia Innovation Showcase took place online on April 29, 2020. Reporting for this story took place during the webinar.
