STAAR ICL approved for market in China

Monrovia, CA-The People's Republic of China's State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) granted approval to STAAR Surgical Co. to market its Visian implantable collamer lens (ICL) in China.

"This approval is an important achievement for STAAR Surgical. It will allow us to enter a market that we believe has the potential to become one of the largest markets for the Visian ICL," said David Bailey, president and chief executive officer of STAAR Surgical. "Currently, China is the second-largest market in the world for the LASIK procedure and there is a higher rate of incidence for myopia and astigmatism in Asian countries compared with the rest of the world. With these two market dynamics, we believe that successful entry into this market could lead to meaningful growth in our overall refractive business."

Bailey added that a training center and regional distribution operation have been established, and was hopeful that the SFDA would approve Visian Toric ICL by the end of the year.