Femtosecond laser sub-Bowman’s keratomileusis and LASEK safely and effectively corrected myopia, according to a study. However, femtosecond laser sub-Bowman’s keratomileusis yielded somewhat better visual and refractive outcomes at 3 months after surgery. A total of 1,072 eyes were treated with femtosecond SBK and 1,036 eyes received LASEK with or without mitomycin C. SBK patients had a mean age of 31.03 years; LASEK patients had a mean age of 30.5 years.

Staar Surgical Co expects a delay in approval from Japan’s Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) for its Visian Toric ICL, its implantable lens to treat myopia and astigmatism. The PMDA has, however, not sought any more clinical trials for Visian Toric ICL. The company’s Visian ICL products are, however, on a “very quick path” to approval in the country. Visian ICL (Implantable Collamer Lens) is used to treat myopia or nearsightedness.

A study showed that posterior chamber phakic IOL implantation treated myopia and astigmatism in patients who underwent previous penetrating keratoplasty (PK). The prospective study included 15 eyes of 15 patients with a mean age of 37.8 years who underwent previous PK and were unable to wear spectacles or contact lenses or to undergo corneal refractive surgery.

An intraocular lens can correct myopia within 0.5 D of the target in 79% of eyes and caused no vision-threatening complications. This was reported by Japanese investigators from the University of Kitasato in the July issue of Archives of Ophthalmology. “Our long-term results indicate that [implantable collamer lens (ICL)] implantation is safe and effective and provides predictable and stable refractive results in the correction of moderate to high myopia throughout a four-year observation,” the authors said. These findings suggest that ICL implantation may be a good alternative for the treatment of moderate to high myopia.

A new study shows that soft contact lens wear does not accelerate the development of nearsightedness in children. Findings from the largest randomized three-year study, which tracked the myopic progression of 484 children ages 8-11 randomly assigned to wear glasses or contact lenses, indicated that there was no clinically meaningful difference between the two forms of vision correction for the treatment of nearsightedness, a vision problem experienced by approximately one-third of the population. The new research further dispels a long held myth that soft contact lenses increase myopia progression more than other vision correction options.

STAAR Surgical Company has received approval from the Sate Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) of the People’s Republic of China to market its Visian™ Toric Implantable Collamer Lens (ICL) in the country for treating nearsightedness and astigmatism. This lens, made of a highly biocompatible material called Collamer, is minimally invasive and foldable. The ICL procedure makes an incision that is as much as 50% smaller than that made by other technologies and the lens is placed behind the iris.