The only commercially available MIGS device currently targeting the supraciliary space now available to patients and surgeons in Sweden and Norway
WAVRE, Belgium — 1 December 2022: iSTAR Medical, a medtech company delivering breakthrough eye care solutions to patients, today announced that the commercial rollout expansion for MINIject® has continued with the first implantations performed in Sweden and Norway.
MINIject® is iSTAR Medical’s minimally-invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) implant and is currently the only commercially available supraciliary MIGS device. Patients in Sweden and Norway with open-angle glaucoma are now able to benefit from MINIject®, which has demonstrated meaningful and sustained performance in lowering intraocular pressure (IOP), combined with a favorable safety profile.
Patients were successfully implanted with MINIject® at Ögonmottagningen, Östersunds sjukhus, Östersund, Sweden by Dr Anna Barkander and in the South East region of Norway. This follows iSTAR Medical’s recent expansion of MINIject® into Switzerland in May and expands iSTAR Medical’s portfolio of European territories where MINIject® is now available for patients, alongside Germany and the UK.
Dr Anna Barkander, Head of the Department of Ophthalmology at Östersunds sjukhus (Sweden), commented:
MIGS plays an important role in the treatment of glaucoma, providing us with more opportunities to treat the heterogenous group of glaucoma patients. I’m pleased that I can now provide my open-angle glaucoma patients access to MINIject, since the supraciliary space is an effective target to lower IOP and thus help delay disease progression and preserve patient vision.
Michel Vanbrabant, CEO of iSTAR Medical, commented:
We continue to progress in our mission to preserve the vision of glaucoma patients globally with our expansion across Europe. Approximately 100,000 individuals are diagnosed with glaucoma in Sweden every year, with many more undiagnosed.[1] In neighboring Norway, approximately 77,000 individuals are treated for glaucoma each year, representing 1% of its population, but 8% of the population aged over 70 years old.[2] We are excited to be able to provide patients and surgeons in Sweden and Norway access to MINIject, which is currently the only commercially available MIGS device targeting the power of the supraciliary space to lower IOP.
About iSTAR Medical
iSTAR Medical is committed to delivering breakthrough eye care solutions. Our most advanced product, MINIject®, is approved in Europe for the treatment of open-angle glaucoma – the leading cause of irreversible blindness – and we are aiming to seek market approval in the US. We believe MINIject®’s distinctive tissue-integrating capabilities unlock a safer, and more effective option for patients. We are building an exceptional team and pipeline of potentially leading products such as MINIject® to establish new treatment paradigms in eye care conditions with the highest patient needs.
iSTAR Medical is an independent company which entered a strategic partnership with AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV) in July 2022.
About MINIject®
MINIject® is iSTAR Medical’s innovative MIGS device for patients with primary open-angle glaucoma. MINIject® combines the distinctive porous structure of its proprietary STAR material with the power offered by the supraciliary space. As a result, it is designed to enhance natural fluid outflow, reducing intraocular pressure (IOP) and the need for medication, while bio-integrating with surrounding tissue, limiting inflammation, fibrosis and subsequent complications.
About Glaucoma
Glaucoma is a progressive disease affecting over 100 million people globally, of which primary open-angle glaucoma is the most common form. [3,4] IOP reduction, through medication or surgery, helps delay disease progression.[3] Medication is generally the first line treatment, but the progressive addition of multiple drops can burden patients with side effects, compliance challenges and costs.[3,5] Invasive surgery can present risks with irreversible complications and often requires long-term patient management.[3,5] MIGS is the most promising and fastest-growing glaucoma therapy due to its enhanced safety profile.[3] We believe MINIject® may become a leading MIGS device with its promising long-term efficacy and safety.
[1] Acta Ophthalmologica, “The Glaucoma Guidelines of the Swedish Ophthalmological Society”, Swedish Ophthalmological Society, 2012
[2] “Minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) for individuals with glaucoma. A method assessment”, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, 2021 https://www.fhi.no/publ/2021/minimal-invasiv-glaukomkirurgi-migs-for-individer-med-glaukom/
[3] Market Scope, “2021 Glaucoma Surgical Device Market Report”, July 2021. https://www.market-scope.com/pages/reports/267/2021-glaucoma-surgical-device-market-report
[4] Jonas JB, Aung T, Bourne RR et al. “Glaucoma”. Lancet 2017; 390: 2083–93
[5] “European Glaucoma Society Terminology and Guidelines for Glaucoma”, 5th Edition: British Journal of Ophthalmology. 2021;105:1-169. https://bjo.bmj.com/content/105/Suppl_1/1
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