Lentechs -Creating A New Vision | Top Opthalamic Company 2021

MedTech Outlook Magazine

Lentechs -Creating A New Vision
APIOCTM-A New Generation of Soft, Suspended Contact Lens

Mr. Robin G. Sears, President & CEO, Lentechs -Creating A New VisionMr. Robin G. Sears, President & CEO
‘The fabulous forties’ in one’s life might not seem as fabulous after all, owing to several cognitive and physiological changes. One of the most universal changes is the onset of presbyopia, which causes near vision impairment with advancing age. One method to correct this visual problem is the use of contact lenses. However, due to complaints of visual compromise and discomfort, the majority of wearers tend to discontinue using even the most popular contact lenses. To have clearer vision, people with presbyopia often rely on reading glasses. As the condition progresses, the need to put glasses on every time to read something up close may become inconvenient. The pursuit of adopting new vision correction modalities such as wearing reading glasses with contact lenses, trying monovision, or switching to multifocal soft contact lenses results in a sustained decrease in presbyopes wearing contact lenses. Even though presbyopia-correcting soft contact lenses have evolved over the years, recent studies show only 14% of presbyopes use these lenses as their primary correction mode and nearly 70% of glasses-wearing presbyopes would prefer to wear contact lenses. This is mainly because current contact lens options result in visual compromise, presented as peripheral or near blur with center-near or center-distance designs additionally sacrificing distance vision quality for better vision up close.

Addressing this challenge is Lentechs, a privately held, clinical-stage ophthalmic medical device company. The company is focused on developing revolutionary soft, suspended contact lenses for all people suffering from presbyopia. Its breakthrough design includes unique, anatomically inspired features that allow free, translational eye movement behind a rotationally stable lens. “We are the first ones to disrupt the contact lens market in over 30 years with our new technology, APIOC. It is designed to work like progressive addition glasses so patients have exceptional vision correction at distance, intermediate, and near without having to compromise on their comfort or vision quality,” states Robin G. Sears, the President and CEO at Lentechs.

As a company, we want to bring about more innovation and breakthrough in the contact lens market to drive patients to eyecare professionals and deliver a new level of satisfaction as they age. We are focused on our novel design which has helped us gain several patents globally

APIOC is the brainchild of two optometrists and co-founders of Lentechs, Melissa D. Bailey, OD, Ph.D., and Joseph T. Barr, OD, MS, who sought to offer a reliable soft contact lens to presbyopes that delivers on vision. Eighty-two percent of optometrists who fit multifocal contact lenses state that it is somewhat challenging to find a solution for presbyopes. Furthermore, only 3% state that they can adequately address all of what patients want with current contact lens options. This leads to a negative impact on how they perceive current offerings. APIOC intends to provide the solution to these issues. The lenses were specifically designed to correct presbyopia, with or without astigmatism, addressing the urgent need in the marketplace.

Once inserted, APIOC is suspended from behind the upper eyelid above the lid wiper using its Stabilizing Crest.The Stabilizing Crest suspends the contact lens securely over the cornea, and together with two Balance Zones, helps maintain rotational stability and centration.The positioning of APIOC allows wearers to look through its center in a straight-ahead gaze for distance, and as the eye looks down, transitions for intermediate and near vision. This feature makes APIOC different than any other soft contact lens currently available. This revolutionary soft, suspended contact lens should beeasier for practitioners to fit and offer reliable vision for patients with comfort they can depend on.

Lentechs’sresearch program received a lot of positive feedback from both patients and practitioners. Eighty-eight percent of optometrists said they would use APIOC themselves ‑ and patients wanted to take the lenses home with them even after completing the trial. The company aims to complete its milestone clinical trials by the end of summer and launch in exclusive markets in early 2022, expanding rapidly thereafter “As a company, we want to bring about more innovation and breakthrough in the contact lens market to drive patients to eyecare professionals and deliver a new level of satisfaction as they age. We are focused on our novel design which has helped us gain several patents globally,” concludes Sears.

Top 10 Opthalamic Companies - 2021

Company
Lentechs -Creating A New Vision

Management
Mr. Robin G. Sears, President & CEO

Description
Lentechs is a privately held, clinical-stage ophthalmic medical device company focused on developing revolutionary soft, suspended contact lens, rooted in science-based innovation that will advance the care for patients with presbyopia. Its breakthrough design includes unique, anatomically inspired features that allow free, translational eye movement behind a rotationally stable lens. It is designed to work like progressive addition glasses so patients have exceptional vision correction at distance, intermediate, and near without having to compromise on their comfort or vision quality

Lentechs -Creating A New Vision News

Lentechs Announces Successful $6 Million Fundraise to Further Key Development Objectives

• Completes a $6 million fundraise led by Vision Vestments LLC

• Proceeds will be utilized to achieve key clinical and manufacturing development objectives for APIOC®, the Company's patented, first-of-its-kind line of soft, suspended contact lens designed to deliver exceptional, glasses-like vision for presbyopes at all distances with the freedom of a contact lens
COLUMBUS, Ohio, -- Lentechsl, a clinical-stage ophthalmic medical device company developing a new generation of soft, suspended contact lens, designed to transform the treatment paradigm for presbyopia, announced the closing of a successful fundraise to further key development objectives for its investigational contact lens for patients with presbyopia. The round was led by Vision Vestments LLC, with additional significant investments from JobsOhio Growth Capital Fund, Ohio Innovation Fund, Bluestem Capital, and Rev1 Ventures.
"This milestone signifies the strength and confidence in Lentechs and APIOC®, a first-of-its-kind line of soft, suspended contact lens designed to deliver exceptional, glasses-like vision at all distances with the freedom of a contact lens. Proceeds will be utilized to finalize industry-leading manufacturing methods and additional randomized clinical trials that will test molded APIOC vs the leading multifocal contact lenses from each of the Big-4 contact lens manufacturers," stated Mr. Robin G. Sears, CEO of Lentechs. "Thank you to all our Board of Directors members and the investors in our company for their continued support to improve visual outcomes for millions of people worldwide."
Presbyopia is a natural part of aging characterized by a gradual loss of the eyes' ability to focus on objects up close and impacts 120 million people in the United States and 2 billion worldwide.1 Currently available multifocal contact lenses often force a visual compromise, leading most presbyopes to choose glasses over a preference for contact lenses.2 Solving this visual compromise and providing patients what they want to wear—contact lenses—is what Lentechs is all about.
Designed specifically with presbyopes in mind, APIOC is first and foremost designed to utilize the eye's anatomy rather than conform to it. Unlike traditional contact lenses, APIOC is suspended behind the upper eyelid, allowing for free, translational (up and down) eye movement, behind the rotationally stable, centered contact lens. By allowing the eye to freely move behind the APIOC lens, wearers can access the specific prescription needed for each visual distance correction.
The additional clinical data will build on the already robust R&D program as Lentechs develops this breakthrough innovation. Earlier designs of APIOC already showed that patients experienced improved distance vision vs their successful, habitual, multifocal contact lenses, and vision comparable to their habitual prescription glasses.
"We are thrilled to invest and partner with Lentechs as part of this financing," stated Craig Krenzel, Principal of Vision Vestments LLC. "Our group shares the passion for disruptive innovation and is completely aligned with Lentechs's leadership in finalizing these key objectives to further differentiate the technology for presbyopes worldwide."