Demand Fuels Expansion of STAAR Surgical’s Experience Center

STAAR Surgical Company has expanded and relocated its STAAR Surgical Experience Center to meet surgeon demand for its EVO family of Implantable Collamer Lenses (EVO ICL). 

Now housed within STAAR’s headquarters in Lake Forest, Calif., (near John Wayne Airport), the center serves as a hub for comprehensive, hands-on training and education in lens-based vision correction. More than 700 U.S. surgeons are now certified by STAAR Surgical to perform EVO ICL.²

“We are thrilled to open our expanded Experience Center, offering cutting-edge resources and training for ophthalmic professionals,” STAAR Surgical President/CEO Tom Frinzi said. “The center reflects our commitment to supporting the growing demand for EVO ICL and advancing its global adoption.”
 
The new Experience Center is a critical addition to customer training, education, and support as the demand for EVO ICL continues to surge among surgeons and refractive practices, driven by the escalating global myopia epidemic. The prevalence of myopia in the United States has doubled over the past three decades to currently reach 42%³ and is expected to soar to 58.4% by 2050.¹ EVO ICL units, a proxy for procedures, grew by 25% in the United States in the first half of 2024.² 

Laser refractive procedure volume, meanwhile, is declining. STAAR Surgical is on track to sell more ICLs between 2024 and 2026 than in the first 25 years of ICL sales combined, reflecting the transformative impact of this technology following U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval and market launch.
 
The Experience Center equips healthcare practitioners with the tools and knowledge to optimize EVO ICL patient outcomes. It offers advanced visualization and communication technology for both in-person and virtual training. Highlights include:

• Immersive wet lab training stations for up to 24 practitioners, with lecture seating for 59 individuals
• Stella, STAAR’s latest innovation in ordering, streamlines and enhances the EVO ICL planning and ordering process
• Advanced diagnostic technology demonstrations, including the OCULUS Pentacam® AXL Wave, IOLMaster 700 and CIRRUS 6000
• A 120-inch 4K video array for video conferencing and streaming of remote live surgery to enhance training 

STAAR Surgical offers numerous professional education programs to support ophthalmic professionals at every stage with EVO ICL. From onboarding to advanced practice, STAAR provides certification through digital training, wet labs, peer mentorship, and proctorship. STAAR also hosts live webinars, an annual surgeon summit and offers on-demand resources through STAAR University for ongoing support tailored to both M.D.s and O.D.s.
 
STAAR has been dedicated solely to ophthalmic surgery for more than 40 years by designing, developing, manufacturing, and marketing implantable lenses for the eye. These lenses are intended to provide visual freedom for patients, lessening or eliminating the reliance on glasses or contact lenses. All of these lenses are foldable, which permits the surgeon to insert them through a small incision. STAAR’s lens used in refractive surgery is called an Implantable Collamer Lens or “ICL,” which includes the EVO ICL product line. More than 3 million ICLs have been sold to date and STAAR markets these lenses in over 75 countries. The company operates manufacturing and packaging facilities in Aliso Viejo, Calif.; Monrovia, Calif.; and Nidau, Switzerland. 

References
¹ Bullimore MA, Brennan NA. The underestimated role of myopia in uncorrectable visual impairment in the United States. Scientific Reports. 2023 Sep 13.
² STAAR Surgical data on file.
³ Banashefski B, Rhee MK, Lema GMC. High Myopia Prevalence across Racial Groups in the United States: A Systematic Scoping Review. J Clin Med. 2023 Apr 21;12(8):3045.