OIS Podcast | Ophthalmology's leading Podcast

Myopia has escalated to epidemic proportions with a global prevalence twice that of obesity. A study published in JAMA Ophthalmology in 2021 found the prevalence of myopia in six-year-old children in China jumped from 5.7% between 2015 and 2019 to 21.5% in 2020.   Given myopia affects about 40% of Americans and up to 90% of the East and Southeast Asians, it’s time to pick up the pace on education,...

Robert Avery, MD, CEO of California Retina Consultants , balances roles as physician and researcher with a lucrative additional career: advising life sciences companies and ophthalmology focused venture capital funds.   With colleague and podcast host Firas Rahhal, MD , Dr. Avery talks about how he got into the business side of medicine. He also looks back over 30 years of retina, which includes p...

CooperVision’s Global Head of Myopia Management Strategy, Rajeev Garg, made a bold move over a decade ago. After a fruitful career in R&D for Abbott and Merck, he got his MBA and transitioned to the commercial side.   It worked out well. He led global teams for Johnson & Johnson and Bausch + Lomb before joining one of the industry’s leading contact lens makers.   With ophthalmologist and v...

Elevated intraocular pressure (IOP) is the only modifiable risk factor for glaucoma. The more IOP data, the better physicians can evaluate treatment impact, which is critical to preserving vision. Implandata Ophthalmic Products GmbH developed the eyemate ® technology platform to fill that need. The implantable sensor, powered and read by a hand-held device, allows physicians to monitor IOP between...

Applications of the metaverse go far beyond gaming and social media. In healthcare and life sciences, innovative physicians and researchers are exploring its potential to accomplish the following:   Enhance decentralized clinical trials Develop precision medicine therapies Improve surgical navigation e.g., to perfect a surgical route before treating the patient Enhance surgical education, training...

With extensive experience as both a medical and technology professional, Khizer Khaderi, MD, MPH, could be described as either a technology whiz who practices medicine or an ophthalmologist pursuing technology. In reality, he falls into a field all his own, combining what he knows about sports performance, vision, and advanced technology into a career that currently includes teaching, research, an...

Fuchs Endothelial Corneal Dystrophy (FECD), a progressive hereditary disease that causes blurred or cloudy vision and vision loss, has no cure other than transplant of endothelial layer. David Eveleth, PhD , founder, president, and CEO of Trefoil Therapeutics , wants to change that. The company’s lead product, TTHX1114, has the potential to medically treat FECD and other corneal dystrophies withou...

Podcast Description: More than 300 clinical thought leaders, pharma industry executives, and ophthalmology investors gathered recently in San Diego, CA, for OIS XII.  In addition to announcing pivotal new data, presenters discussed drug and device innovations, advances in clinical trials, and how to gain or maintain a competitive edge in today’s market. For this week’s OIS Podcast , surgeon Ehsan...

Identifying MDs and ODs is but one of many activities involved in developing a commercial launch strategy. To execute that launch according to targets requires strong data, effective messaging, thoughtful strategy, and luck.  According to a ZS analysis, out of 30 emerging pharma first launches from 2019 through 2021, only four met expectations. At the OIS XII panel “Maximizing OD/MD Market Potenti...

For more than 30 years, Heidelberg Engineering has set the standard in diagnostic imaging. Best known for imaging quality and optical coherence tomography (OCT) capabilities, Heidelberg focuses on innovation, customer service, and education.   OIS Podcast host Sophia Pathai, MD, PhD , caught up with Heidelberg’s VP/head of corporate strategy Kfir Azoulay, as well as Heidelberg Engineering UK manag...

Scott Brun, MD , began his long career in pharma R&D leadership in the late 1990s, holding key roles at Abbott and AbbVie . Had he picked up a pencil with his right hand, his career may have taken a completely different turn. Dr. Brun earned his medical degree at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and completed a residency in ophthalmology at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. A...

What if legendary ophthalmologist Don Gass, MD, had access to both optical coherence tomography (OCT) and artificial intelligence? One can only imagine the breakthroughs.   Alex Walsh, MD , CEO of Envision Diagnostics and a retina specialist at Retina-Vitreous Associates in Los Angeles and vicinity, wants to bring Gassian interpretive capabilities to everyone in eye care.    His company’s product,...

The Food and Drug Administration approved Tyrvaya (varenicline solution), a multidose nasal spray, to treat signs and symptoms of dry eye disease, about a year ago.   Jeffrey Nau, PhD, MMS, CEO of Oyster Point Pharma , sat down with OIS Podcast host Paul Karpecki, OD, FAAO , to discuss the launch and his learnings over the year that was.    Since then, about 62,000 Tyrvaya prescriptions have been...

For all the drugs, biologics, and medical devices approved for use in the United States and Europe, few of them make their way to China. AffaMed Therapeutics , a global clinical stage biotechnology company, was established to bridge the gap between global innovation and unmet need in China. With a focus on ophthalmology, neurology, and psychiatric disorders, AffaMed leaders want to serve the patie...

Ram Palanki, PharmD , VP of commercial strategy and operations for REGENXBIO , has been involved in the development and launch of at least two groundbreaking treatments: Lucentis (ranibizumab, Genentech/Roche) and Macugen (pegaptanib). If all goes well in clinical trials, Dr. Palanki could soon add one more to his extensive CV: a one-time gene therapy designed to treat age-related macular degenera...

OIS has showcased dozens of ophthalmic leaders who are part of Israel’s thriving biotech and medtech spaces. This OIS Podcast features one of those leaders, who’s preparing for MIXiii Health-Tech. IL , the annual gathering for the life science and health tech industries in Israel. It’ll be held in Jerusalem November 9 and 10. And for the first time, OIS Israel will be part of it. Podcast host Rob...

Rayner is best known for its intraocular lenses (IOLs). It developed the world’s first IOL and is the sole manufacturer of IOLs in the UK. The company currently manufactures 1.3 million lenses a year, but there’s more to the story. Rayner’s portfolio also includes a delivery system, ophthalmic viscosurgical devices, drops, and a digital health platform that captures  patient-reported outcomes. CEO...

As head of Sight and Sound Technology , the largest supplier and distributor of technology and devices designed for visually-impaired and blind individuals, Glenn Tookey wouldn’t be disappointed if he went out of business. But until there are cures for all eye diseases, he remains a strong advocate for his customers.  OIS Podcast host Rob Rothman, MD , kicked off a lively discussion with Tookey th...

According to the India Brand Equity Foundation, India is one of the top 12 destinations worldwide for biotech activity. Seed-stage venture capital firm Endiya Partners is a player in that space, investing in product startups solving global problems.  One of its portfolio companies, Eyestem , is working to solve the problem of equal access to cell therapies. Its vision is to develop a scalable cell...

A market leader in Japan with a 130-year history, Santen is paving new roads in the US and China. Peter Sallstig , MD, MBA, Santen’s CMO and global head of product development division sat down with OIS Podcast host Paul Karpecki, OD, to lay out the blueprint.  In less than 30 minutes, you’ll hear about the products and business strategies that will help Santen compete in these markets at a high l...

Michael Chiang, MD , director of the National Eye Institute , spent more than 20 years in academic research. Now, he leads an organization that supports that research by funding more than 1,500 research and training grants for projects that address vision impairment and blindness. A pediatric ophthalmologist who’s board-certified in clinical informatics, Dr. Chiang remains intensely curious and ge...

European investment in ophthalmology MedTech is more opportunistic than strategic says Klaus Stockemann , managing partner of Peppermint VenturePartners in Berlin. With fewer venture capitalists focused on the market, they are more receptive to cold calls and impromptu pitches at medical conferences. That’s one of the many insights provided when new OIS Podcast host Sophia Pathai, MD, PhD, MPH cau...

Orbis International has been a pioneer in preventing and treating avoidable blindness for forty years. While much of that work takes plane on its Flying Eye Hospital, the organization also uses advanced technology to bring quality care to individuals worldwide. Cybersight is the global nonprofit’s telemedicine platform. Through it, the organization offers 24/7 live peer-to-peer consults for specia...

A group of experts in AMD and geographic atrophy discussed two GA treatments in Phase III studies: Apellis’s pegcetacoplan and Iveric Bio’s Zimura . If approved, these therapies will potentially slow lesion growth and preserve vision in patients with GA. Because they require monthly or bimonthly injections, they may also dramatically increase workloads for already overtaxed retina specialists. Dav...