OPTOS’ P200 DEVICE SUPPORTS UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA HEALTH SYSTEM IN DIABETIC SCREENING
8/7/2007
LONDON, UK, 02 AUGUST 2007 – Optos plc (LSE: OPTS), a leading medical technology company for the design, development, manufacturing and marketing of retinal imaging devices, today announced that the Company’s P200 device has been installed at the University of Virginia (UVa) Health System to ensure that the 2,000 diabetic patients served by the outpatient clinic receive annual retinal exams during regular medical check-ups.
“Preventative eye exams are important for people with diabetes, yet half of our patients with this condition never go to an eye doctor,” said John G. Leiner, M.D., Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at the UVa and an attending physician at University Medical Associates (UMA), the medical school’s largest and busiest outpatient clinic. “Many UMA patients have transportation issues and cannot spend several hours waiting for dilated pupils to return to normal after an eye exam.”
Diabetes is a prevalent condition amongst the clinic’s patients. While UMA has been successful in providing patient education, blood work, foot exams and insulin regimes to the diabetics its serves, it has reported being less effective in getting these patients to follow up on referrals to eye doctors.
“So far, we have screened about 100 diabetic patients and 20 percent of them had something wrong,” said Dr Leiner. “We want to catch problems early and prevent them from progressing into serious conditions - our goal is to have 100 percent of our diabetic patients undergo annual eye screenings.”
“Preventative eye and health care regimes are not simply a matter of avoiding emergency problems, they are an essential tool in the earlier detection, treatment and management of disease,” said Thomas W. Butts, Chief Executive Officer, Optos plc. “We are very pleased that our technology is supporting the University of Virginia Health System in carrying out diabetic screening.”
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Notes to Editors
University of Virginia) / University of Virginia Health System / University Medical Associates
The University of Virginia (UVa) is located in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA.. According to US News and World report rankings, in the 10 years since U.S. News & World Report began ranking public universities as a separate category, the University of Virginia has ranked either No. 1 or No. 2. It was named the No. 2 best public university in the 2007 edition. U.Va. continues to rank in the Top 25 among the best of all national universities, public and private, tying with the University of Michigan at No. 24 last year. The University of Virginia Health System is a nationally renowned academic medical centre committed to providing outstanding patient care, educating tomorrow's health care leaders, and discovering new and better ways to treat diseases. Since 1998, the Medical Centre has been recognized as one of the nation's top 100 hospitals, according to Solucient (formerly HCIA-Sachs Institute), a leading health care information company. University Medical Associates (UMA) serves as a training ground in internal medicine for 100 residents each year and cares for patients from the States of Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee. In operation for more than a quarter century, UMA handles 30,000 patient visits per year. Its staff includes ten faculty physicians and 18 nurses, as well as the medical residents.
Optos plc
Optos plc is a leading and rapidly growing medical technology company for the design, development, manufacturing and marketing of devices that image the retina, the light-sensitive area at the back of the eye. Optos' platform technology is the Panoramic200 Scanning Laser Ophthalmoscope device - known as the P200. In a quarter of a second the P200 device produces a high resolution image of up to 200 degrees or approximately 82 percent of the retina in a single capture. The image - branded the optomap® Retinal Exam - provides eye care practitioners with clinically useful information that facilitates the early detection of disorders and diseases evidenced in the retina, such as glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. Retinal imaging can also indicate evidence of non-eye or systemic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and certain cancers. The Company has regulatory clearance (CE and FDA 510(k)) to market a second device - P200MA. Optos’ technology provides an unequalled combination of wide-field retinal imaging, speed and convenience for both practitioner and patient and can help save sight and save lives. Optos is incorporated in Scotland under the Companies Act 1985 with registered number SC139953. The Company maintains its Registered Office at Queensferry House, Carnegie Business Campus, Dunfermline, Scotland KY11 8GR United Kingdom.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made in this announcement are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts but rather are based on the Company's current expectations, estimates and projections about its industry, its beliefs and assumptions. Words such as 'anticipates,' 'expects,' 'intends,' 'plans,' 'believes,' 'seeks,' 'estimates,' and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond the Company's control, are difficult to predict and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or forecasted in the forward-looking statements. The Company cautions shareholders and prospective shareholders not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect the view of the Company only as of the date of this announcement. The forward-looking statements made in this announcement relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. The Company will not undertake any obligation to release publicly any revisions or updates to these forward-looking statements to reflect events, circumstances or unanticipated events occurring after the date of this announcement except as required by law or by any appropriate regulatory authority.