The U.S. attorney’s office in Buffalo has issued a subpoena to the Ista Pharmaceuticals Inc. requesting it to produce documents regarding an anti-inflammatory drug. The drug in question is Xibrom, used in treatment of inflammatory infections of the eye after cataract surgery. The company has said in a statement that it will be cooperating with the request, though it did not specify the reason for such a request.

A new survey sponsored by CooperVision and conducted by Harris Interactive (R) found that 83% of U.S. adults aged 18 years and above are not aware of a vision condition called presbyopia, which inflicts nearly 90 million Americans, or roughly one in three people. The survey also found that only 27% of the U.S. adults aged 18 years and above expect to need bifocals or reading glasses, which is the most common correction for people facing presbyopia.

A recent study published in the Ophthalmology journal found that there is a 70% increased risk of developing the most common form of glaucoma, primary open-angle glaucoma, for diabetic women as compared to non-diabetic women. The study, led by Dr. Louis Pasquale, was conducted on over 76,000 women and provided conclusive evidence of the risk of glaucoma in people with diabetes.

Hi-Tech Pharmacal Co Inc has received tentative approval from the FDA for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for dorzolamide hydrochloride with timolol maleate ophthalmic solution. Hi-Tech Pharmacal’s dorzolamide hydrochloride with timolol maleate ophthalmic solution is the generic version of Merck’s Cosopt, for the treatment of glaucoma. The company said that it has 180 days of marketing exclusivity for generic dorzolamide hydrochloride with timolol maleate ophthalmic solution, and will begin marketing the product upon the completion of Merck’s pediatric exclusivity period in October 2008.

EyeGate Pharma has initiated a Phase I clinical study designed to assess the safety and tolerability of the non-invasive EyeGate® II Ocular Drug Delivery System in up to 95 healthy adult volunteers. This is a single centre, randomized, single masked, comparative-group safety and tolerability study of a range of single iontophoretic dose levels with a citrate buffer via the EyeGate® II Delivery System. The EyeGate® II Delivery System represents a fundamental advance in non-invasive ocular drug delivery and EyeGate Pharma is accelerating the commercialization of this novel technology as a potential alternative to the current ocular delivery methods.

SynergEyes Inc. has launched special hybrid contact lenses for people over 40, who are suffering from presbyopia. The lenses are called hybrid because the design in it bonds a hard and soft contact lens together to effect vision correction in presbyopia patients. Thus, SynergEyes(R) Multifocal hybrid contact lens provide the comfort of soft lenses along with all the advantages of rigid lenses.