Iolab
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
Johnson & Johnson subsidiary receives a patent covering laser technology for fragmentation of cataracts prior to replacement with intraocular lenses. The probe incorporating the technology, which "is designed to be less invasive" than ultrasonic phacoemulsification, pulses laser energy onto a target in the device that converts the laser energy to soundwave energy. Iolab says the device can fit through 2.4 mm incisions as opposed to the 3 mm or greater required for phacoemulsification. In addition, "no heat is generated at the incision site," the firm says. Iolab has exclusive, world-wide development and marketing rights to the product, which was developed by patent recipient Jack Dodick, MD, Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital. Six procedures were performed with the laser in 1991 under an investigational device exemption. More trials are slated for 1995