VisionCare Implantable Telescope Technology Presentations Featured at Upcoming American Academy of Ophthalmology and Ophthalmolo
October 20 2009 - 5:55PM
PR Newswire (US)
Telescope Prosthesis for End-Stage Macular Degeneration Highlighted
SARATOGA, Calif., Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- VisionCare Ophthalmic
Technologies, Inc., a developer of advanced visual prosthetic
devices for individuals with age-related macular degeneration
(AMD), today announced upcoming scientific and corporate
presentations on its implantable telescope technology. VisionCare's
investigational telescope implant is the first medical device to be
recommended for FDA approval by the FDA Ophthalmic Devices Advisory
Panel for End-Stage AMD, a leading cause of untreatable blindness
in the U.S. Three podium presentations are scheduled as follows:
American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Annual Meeting October 23 -
27, 2009 - Moscone Center, San Francisco. - Friday, October 23
Session: AAO Retina 2009 Subspecialty Day, Late Breaking
Developments Location: Moscone Center South, Esplanade Ballroom
3:28 PM Long-term Data on the Implantable Telescope Technology
Jeffrey S. Heier, MD, Vitreoretinal Specialist, Ophthalmic
Consultants of Boston, Boston, MA. - Monday, October 26 Session:
AAO Joint Meeting, Symposium 25 Location: Moscone Center South,
Esplanade Ballroom 5:14 PM Implantable Miniaturized Telescope Mark
R. Wilkins, MD, Cornea/Cataract Specialist, Moorfields Eye
Hospital, London. Ophthalmology Innovation Summit (OIS) October 22,
2009 - The Palace Hotel, San Francisco. - 8:50 AM VisionCare
Ophthalmic Technologies Allen W. Hill, President and CEO At the AAO
annual meeting, VisionCare is in Booth #5437 located in the West
Hall of the Moscone Convention Center. About the Telescope Device
The investigational Implantable Miniature Telescope (by Dr. Isaac
Lipshitz) is designed to be a solution for moderate to profound
vision loss due to advanced, end-stage forms of AMD that have no
current surgical or medical treatment options. Smaller than a pea,
the telescope prosthetic device is implanted in one eye in an
outpatient surgical procedure. In the implanted eye, the device
renders enlarged central vision images over a wide area of the
retina to improve central vision, while the non-operated eye
provides peripheral vision for mobility and orientation. On March
27, the FDA Ophthalmic Devices Advisory Panel unanimously
recommended that the FDA approve, with conditions, the premarket
application (PMA) for VisionCare's device for End-Stage AMD. The
telescope implant is the first medical device to be recommended by
the panel for FDA approval for End-Stage AMD, a leading cause of
untreatable blindness in the U.S. The company anticipates FDA
approval within the next few months. The device has received CE
Mark approval in Europe. About Macular Degeneration Macular
degeneration is a disorder of the central retina, or macula, which
is responsible for detailed vision that controls important
functional visual activities like recognizing faces and watching
television. According to the National Eye Institute over 1.7
million Americans over age 50 suffer mild to profound vision loss
from advanced AMD, which frequently culminates as End-Stage AMD
(visual impairment due to untreatable advanced AMD). Patients
affected in both eyes often experience a loss of independence,
social interaction, and have difficulty with activities of daily
living requiring detailed vision. Approximately half of the
individuals living with advanced AMD are affected in both eyes.
About VisionCare VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies, Inc.,
headquartered in Saratoga, CA is a privately-held company focused
on development, manufacturing, and marketing of visual prosthetic
devices. The Implantable Miniature Telescope was invented by
company founders, Yossi Gross and Isaac Lipshitz. Information on
VisionCare can be found at http://www.visioncareinc.net/.
DATASOURCE: VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies, Inc. CONTACT: Allen
Hill, President and CEO of VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies,
Inc., +1-408-872-9393, Web Site: http://www.visioncareinc.net/
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