Financial News
Carl Zeiss Meditec said that it closed its financial year on a high note, consistently pursuing its growth course, with revenue increasing 12.1% in the fiscal year.
Iridex is among a group of companies which recently received letters from the SEC asking why they had not disclosed business dealings in Syria, Iran, Sudan, and Cuba, according to a report in the Financial Times.
PhotoMedex and Radiancy stockholders approved the merger of the two companies.
Synergetics USA saw growth in sales, gross margin, income from continuing operations, and net income in 1Q12 compared to 1Q11.

Other News
Alcon Laboratories plans to begin moving about 400 employees into newly leased space in west Fort Worth, TX, in the spring, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Bausch + Lomb and Technolas said that the Victus Femtosecond Laser Platform is now available in Europe. The Victus platform has a CE Mark for LASIK flap, astigmatic keratotomy, Intracor, capsulotomy, and lens fragmentation.
Biolase has a new patent which covers the architecture and techniques for treating an ocular or related tissue site utilizing laser energy to affect one or more physiological properties mitigating the effects of presbyopia and improving the way a person sees.
Health Canada approved Guided Therapeutics’ LuViva advanced cervical scan. In other news, the National Cancer Institute designated the scan as one of the agency’s successful investments for developing innovative cancer-fighting products.
The UK’s National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) said that Novartis’ Lucentis (ranibizumab) is not as cost-effective as conventional laser photocoagulation and rejected the drug as a treatment for diabetic macular edema (DME). This is good news for companies like Iridex, which said that data from a clinical study compiled over 10 years demonstrates the safety and efficacy of MicroPulse laser therapy for treating DME without the retinal tissue damage associated with conventional laser therapy.
The FDA gave 510(k) clearance to OptiMedica’s Catalys precision laser system, which combines a femtosecond laser, OCT imaging, and the company’s pattern-scanning technology. In other news, Catalys is being used in the first European patients.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published instructions for updates to the clinical laboratory fee schedule for 2012, including a revised reimbursement rate for TearLab’s TearLab Osmolarity Test, effective January 1, 2012. In other news, the FDA granted the company’s petition for a waiver under CLIA for the system.