Officials with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently granted approval of the Raindrop Near Vision Inlay, a device that can be implanted into the cornea to resolve nearsightedness for patients who have presbyopia.
This is the second implantable corneal device that corrects nearsightedness that the FDA has approved. It is specifically for patients who did not receive cataract surgery.
This is also the first implantable device that is designed to alter the cornea’s shape to fix nearsightedness.
“Given the prevalence of presbyopia and the aging of the baby boomer population, the need for near-vision correction will likely rise in the coming years,” Dr. William Maisel, chief scientist in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said. “The Raindrop Near Vision Inlay provides a new option for surgical, outpatient treatment of presbyopia.”
Presbyopia, a normal part of aging, stops the eye from focusing, which causes reduced near vision. This happens to almost all adults throughout their lifetimes, typically when they are between forty and fifty years old. Usually people choose reading glasses or bifocals as a corrective approach for this problem. Corneal inlay surgery, an elective choice, is now available for people who don’t want to wear glasses.
