Eyeworld

2/14 VRN14003JAD-B P 1 4 Together they will be the largest provider of corneal transplant tissue in the world S ightLife (Seattle) and Ocular Systems Inc. (OSI, Winston-Salem, N.C.) have come together in a mission to combat corneal blindness, according to officials from the organizations. "The inter- esting thing is that [the SightLife organization and its members] are establishing themselves as the leader in this arena of eye banking, which is becoming a very sophisticated activity," said Richard L. Lindstrom, MD, Minnesota Eye Consultants, Minneapolis. SightLife recently opened a new eye bank at the Gavin Herbert Eye Institute in Irvine, Calif., which Dr. Lindstrom said will help to create a strong presence for them on the West Coast. SightLife is the only non- profit global health organization and eye bank solely focused on eliminat- ing corneal blindness in the U.S. and around the world. The organization works in partnership with surgeons and health organizations in more than 30 countries. OSI was founded in 2004 and was the first company dedicated to the processing of human corneal tissue for endothelial replacement surgeries. The combination of the two organizations has lead to the creation of the largest provider of corneal tissue for transplantation in the world, according to officials. "The thing that is unique, espe- cially about SightLife, is that they have expanded their mission state- ment to be a global mission state- ment," Dr. Lindstrom said, adding that both SightLife and the Eye Bank Association of America had prima- rily a U.S. agenda for the manage- ment of corneal blindness until recently. In the U.S. there is a surplus of high quality tissue to meet the needs of U.S. patients. "So we have enough that we can provide good tissue to every American who needs a corneal transplant in a timely fashion but also have some left over for export to other parts of the world," he said. There is a shortage outside the U.S. of eye banks and donor tissue, as well as a shortage of surgeons in some areas of the world. Poor qual- ity and availability of donor tissue can cause problems, even when there are skilled surgeons onsite. According to a press release from SightLife and OSI, in 2013, these two organizations and 15 partner eye banks in India, Nepal, Ethiopia and other countries pro- vided more than 20,000 corneas for transplant, which helped to restore sight each day to 55 people around the world. Dr. Lindstrom said the first focus for SightLife outside the U.S. is India, and he noted that they are spending a significant amount in human services and money to ex- pand the eye banking services in India. With these efforts, there has been significant progress so far, he said. "Their goal by the year 2020 is to provide 100,000 donor corneas a year minimum in India; the second goal after that is to provide 1 million cornea donors per year." SightLife stands out because no other eye bank has had this kind of mission to make an impact on corneal blindness worldwide. "We now have a U.S. eye bank leading the effort to have a signifi- cant impact on the prevalence of corneal blindness worldwide, and their first target is India," he said. "It definitely is a huge unmet need; there's an estimated 100 million corneal blind in the world," Dr. Lindstrom said. EW Editors' note: Dr. Lindstrom has financial interests with Bausch + Lomb (Bridgewater, N.J.). Contact information Lindstrom: rllindstrom@mneye.com June 2014 by Ellen Stodola EyeWorld Staff Writer SightLife comes together with Ocular Systems, sets sights on India © 2014 Novartis 2/14 VRN14003JAD-B PI IMPORTANT SAFET Y INFORMATION FOR THE VERION™ REFERENCE UNIT AND VERION™ DIGITAL MARKER CAUTION: Federal (USA) law restricts this device to sale by, or on the order of, a physician. INTENDED USES: The VERION ™ Reference Unit is a preoperative measurement device that captures and utilizes a high-resolution reference image of a patient's eye in order to determine the radii and corneal curvature of steep and at axes, limbal position and diameter, pupil position and diameter, and corneal reex position. In addition, the VERION ™ Reference Unit provides preoperative surgical planning functions that utilize the reference image and preoperative measurements to assist with planning cataract surgical procedures, including the number and location of incisions and the appropriate intraocular lens using existing formulas. The VERION ™ Reference Unit also supports the export of the high-resolution reference image, preoperative measurement data, and surgical plans for use with the VERION ™ Digital Marker and other compatible devices through the use of a USB memory stick. The VERION ™ Digital Marker links to compatible surgical microscopes to display concurrently the reference and microscope images, allowing the surgeon to account for lateral and rotational eye movements. In addition, the planned capsulorhexis position and radius, IOL positioning, and implantation axis from the VERION ™ Reference Unit surgical plan can be overlaid on a computer screen or the physician's microscope view. CONTRAINDICATIONS: The following conditions may aect the accuracy of surgical plans prepared with the VERION ™ Reference Unit: a pseudophakic eye, eye xation problems, a non-intact cornea, or an irregular cornea. In addition, patients should refrain from wearing contact lenses during the reference measurement as this may interfere with the accuracy of the measurements. Only trained personnel familiar with the process of IOL power calculation and astigmatism correction planning should use the VERION ™ Reference Unit. Poor quality or inadequate biometer measurements will aect the accuracy of surgical plans prepared with the VERION ™ Reference Unit. The following contraindications may aect the proper functioning of the VERION ™ Digital Marker: changes in a patient's eye between preoperative measurement and surgery, an irregular elliptic limbus (e.g., due to eye xation during surgery, and bleeding or bloated conjunctiva due to anesthesia). In addition, the use of eye drops that constrict sclera vessels before or during surgery should be avoided. WARNINGS: Only properly trained personnel should operate the VERION ™ Reference Unit and VERION ™ Digital Marker. Only use the provided medical power supplies and data communication cable. The power supplies for the VERION ™ Reference Unit and the VERION ™ Digital Marker must be uninterruptible. Do not use these devices in combination with an extension cord. Do not cover any of the component devices while turned on. Only use a VERION ™ USB stick to transfer data. The VERION ™ USB stick should only be connected to the VERION ™ Reference Unit, the VERION ™ Digital Marker, and other compatible devices. Do not disconnect the VERION ™ USB stick from the VERION ™ Reference Unit during shutdown of the system. The VERION ™ Reference Unit uses infrared light. Unless necessary, medical personnel and patients should avoid direct eye exposure to the emitted or reected beam. PRECAUTIONS: To ensure the accuracy of VERION ™ Reference Unit measurements, device calibration and the reference measurement should be conducted in dimmed ambient light conditions. Only use the VERION ™ Digital Marker in conjunction with compatible surgical microscopes. ATTENTION: Refer to the user manuals for the VERION ™ Reference Unit and the VERION ™ Digital Marker for a complete description of proper use and maintenance of these devices, as well as a complete list of contraindications, warnings and precautions. 1 4/24/14 12:41 PM Surgeons Mona Bhargava, Vikas Mittal, Manohar Mehta, and Uma Kamat participate in a wet lab session at the SightLife DSEK Didactic and Wet Lab Skills Transfer Course in Goa, India at Keracon 2013, a national meeting of corneal surgeons. Source: SightLife 2-10 O&C_EW June 2014-DL_Layout 1 6/3/14 12:09 PM Page 3

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