Harvard Eye Associates reported that its surgeons have implanted the first worldwide AccuraSee™ Intraocular Pseudophakic Contact Lens (IOPCL) to improve near vision in patients with macular degeneration. Macular degeneration, the country’s leading cause of legal blindness in people over age 65, is a disease caused by aging of the delicate cells in the retina, making it difficult to read or recognize faces. The AccuraSee™ lens implant is placed to help magnify images and allow patients to use parts of the retina that are not affected by macular degeneration. It is placed on top of an existing posterior chamber intraocular lens implant for patients who have had previous cataract surgery.
“This implant could permanently change the lives of patients with serious vision loss,” said Dr. John Hovanesian, the implanting surgeon at Harvard Eye Associates.
The AccuraSee™ IOPCL was invented by Kevin J. Cady, CEO and founder of OnPoint Vision™ Inc., headquartered in Aliso Viejo, CA. The implants were part of a first-in-human (FIH) US Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) study evaluating the lens’ ability to improve near vision for people with macular degeneration.
Harvard Eye Associates, with three locations throughout Orange County, is a multi-specialty ophthalmology practice and one of the country’s leading cataract surgery treatment and research centers. Harvard Eye Associates has pioneered numerous advancements in medical and surgical eye care since its founding in 1974, including the implantation of the world’s first implants for small incision cataract surgery.
Patients who have previously undergone cataract surgery who have macular degeneration can inquire about the study by contacting Harvard Eye Associates research department at 949-900-5248 or harvardeye.com.
Caution: Investigational Device. Limited by Federal (or United States) law to investigational use.
