Optejet Microdose Dispenser Shows Promise in Myopia Treatment

The Optejet dispenser from Eyenovia Inc. may be a more “human-centric” design than traditional eye droppers, which may make treatments for vision problems, including myopia, presbyopia, and mydriasis easier to deliver, two studies indicate.

“Traditional eye drops typically overdose a patient’s eye with medication and preservatives, which can lead to significant dose-related side effects,” Eyenovia CEO Michael Rowe said. “Optejet is proving to be easier to use and therefore may deliver the appropriate dose of medication to potentially decrease side effects.” 
 
The investigational Optejet dispenser administers ophthalmic solutions horizontally using the company’s proprietary Microdose Array Print (MAP) technology. The system has been shown to deliver accurate microdoses through a precision spray, dispensing medication with the push of a button, with no need to tilt the head back, and requires minimal hand-eye coordination.
 
Traditional eye drops can deliver four to five times larger volumes of medication than the human eye can hold, which can cause overdosing and drug waste. The Optejet dispenser is designed to administer 1/5 the volume of solution compared to a traditional eyedropper, making doses less likely to spill or run onto the patient’s face.
 
One paper (Rathi, Scott, 2020) presented at the 2020 American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery reviewed multiple studies comparing the Optejet dispenser with traditional eye droppers. In one study with the Optejet, the researcher successfully administered 96% of doses on the first attempt, and 95% of patients successfully self-administered the doses on the first attempt as well. Another study found ophthalmic technicians successfully delivered doses on 83% of first attempts and were successful 99% of the time within two attempts.
 
A separate study conducted by Eyenovia (2021) monitored the six-month daily eye drop treatment compliance of 28 children ages 6 to 13 with pediatric progressive myopia. It found that nearly 90% of children using the Optejet once-daily treatment successfully complied with their treatment regimen. This compares favorably to the 50% compliance rate for pediatric ophthalmic medications or the 59-69% range for adult topical ophthalmic drug users (Naito, 2018; see also Patel, 1995; Winfield, 1990; Matsui, 1997).
 
The Optejet’s delivery mechanism has the potential to fundamentally change the way people think about administering eye medication, according to Eyenovia. A survey conducted by the company found that four of five presbyopic patients between 40 and 55 years old (a 100-patient survey) favored Eyenovia’s device over traditional eyedrops.
 
Optejet has not been approved, cleared, or licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use, and it is not commercially available in the United States. 
 
Eyenovia Inc. is an ophthalmic pharmaceutical technology company developing a pipeline of microdose array print (MAPTM) therapeutics. Eyenovia is currently focused on the late-stage development of microdosed medications for mydriasis, presbyopia and myopia progression.