STAAR Surgical Celebrates 30th Anniversary of Implantable Collamer Lens
STAAR Surgical Company, a leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of implantable lenses for the eye, is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its proprietary Implantable Collamer Lens (ICL). The first ICLs were implanted by a group of surgeons in October 1993, including Roberto Zaldivar, MD, Founder of the Zaldivar Institute. The early ICLs have evolved into the current generation of ICLs with a central port – the EVO ICL™ family of lenses.
“We celebrate the 30th anniversary of our ICL technology with surgeons and patients,” said Tom Frinzi, President and CEO of STAAR Surgical. “The collaboration between ophthalmic surgeons and industry is important and unique for advancing innovative technologies like ICL. We are proud of our association with Dr. Zaldivar and the many other clinicians that work with STAAR to positively impact the millions of patients who will benefit from our lenses.”
Myopia (nearsightedness), the most common refractive visual error, is a global epidemic that is expected to impact over half the world’s population by 2050.2 EVO ICLs offer a lens-based alternative for the correction/reduction of refractive error in people who currently use glasses and/or contact lenses for vision correction.
The EVO procedure involves implanting (or adding) a proprietary and biocompatible EVO ICL into the eye between the iris (colored part of the eye) and the natural lens to correct/reduce nearsightedness with and without astigmatism. The entire EVO ICL procedure typically takes about 20–30 minutes and most patients experience improved vision right after the procedure. The EVO ICL can permanently correct vision without removing corneal tissue and, if desired, is removable by a doctor for added peace of mind. EVO ICL gives the patient flexibility for the future, while also helping to eliminate dependency on glasses and contact lenses now.
STAAR began selling the ICL in 1996. The ICL with the central port (EVO ICL) was first approved for commercial use in CE Mark countries in 2011 and in the United States in 2022.
1 Packer M. The Implantable Collamer Lens with a central port: review of the literature. Clinical Ophthalmology 2018: 12:2427–2438.
2 Holden BA, Fricke TR, Wilson DA, et al. Global Prevalence of Myopia and High Myopia and Temporal Trends from 2000 through 2050. Ophthalmology. 2016.
