Press Release

Major Forces Team up to Shape Myopia Management of the Future

Myopia management: ZEISS innovations to be guided by international expert committee

3 April 2024

For more than 15 years, ZEISS has been engaged in research and development as well as practice in myopia management. ZEISS is now strengthening its cooperation with practitioners, academic and clinical institutions by forming an advisory board, a think-tank of leading experts whose scientific and practical knowledge supports further work on innovations in myopia management.

A holistic approach to a global phenomenon
Board composition: diversity and expertise
Overview advisory board members
Prof Padmaja Sankaridurg

Aalen / Sydney, Germany / Australia | 3 April 2024 | ZEISS Vision Care

Remark: The picture and title of Dr Sotiris Plainis was changed after publication on 5 April 2024.

Progressive myopia is far from being fully understood. To shape the myopia management of the future, a strong network that brings together a variety of perspectives from science, development and practice is needed. ZEISS is dedicated to finding effective, needs-based solutions for the management of progressive and high myopia. In order to integrate the diversity of relevant scientific perspectives for basic and application-oriented research even more closely into its innovation processes, ZEISS has moved forward to establish a Myopia Advisory Board, comprising experts from clinical practice, academia and the business world who will independently assess the developments at ZEISS and advise the company on various aspects related to myopia management.

Major Forces Team up to Shape Myopia Management of the Future — ZEISS offers solutions for the management of progressive myopia like ZEISS MyoCare.

A holistic approach to a global phenomenon

"Myopia is such an important issue that we cannot view it solely from one viewpoint, i.e., for example, from the point of view of a manufacturer or that of a scientist. The condition starts commonly in children but affects them all through their formative years, their educational and professional careers and well beyond into old age for their entire life. Therefore, we have a particular responsibility and the need to be open to a range of perspectives to develop the best possible solution for all those affected," says Prof Padmaja Sankaridurg, Head of Global Myopia Management at ZEISS Vision Care. The newly formed ZEISS Myopia Advisory Board offers just that: a holistic view of myopia. "The independent experts come in from their strength and knowledge to provide us with an unbiased opinion on our myopia strategy and guide us to provide the best solution for each myope."

The board members are from across industry, science and/or clinical practice in optometry or ophthalmology. This combination of expertise enables ZEISS to incorporate a wide range of myopia management aspects into business-relevant decisions. Ultimately, the aim is to offer holistic solutions that consider myopes of all ages. “They also bring in global and regional perspectives. Millions are affected worldwide and especially in Asia but in addition to this regional variation in prevalence, there are regional variations in practice patterns," Sankaridurg continued.

Board composition: diversity and expertise

"Our advisory board members come from a range of specialist areas from across the world and have generously donated their time and expertise to support this important work," says Sankaridurg. "We now have a diverse team of global experts supporting us in our evidence-based myopia work."

The ZEISS Myopia Advisory Board was established in 2023 and will meet at regular intervals. Prof Sankaridurg is the Chair of the board and manages the current network of 14 experts and is supported by Prof Craig Woods who is the Secretary of the board.

Overview advisory board members

Prof Craig Woods

Adjunct Professor, School of Optometry, University of New South Wales, and Executive Manager of Educational Development for IACLE and Vice President of the ISCLR.
Prof Cristina Álvarez Peregrina

Lecturer and researcher at the Complutense University of Madrid, where she teaches general optometry, pediatric optometry, and clinic.
Dr Thomas Aller

Optometrist and researcher in myopia control methods and devices.
Dr Dwight Akerman

Optometrist and experienced executive in vision care industry. He serves as the Chief Medical Editor at Review of Myopia Management.
Prof Dominique Bremond-Gignac

Professor of Ophthalmology, Head of the Ophthalmology Department with pediatric subspecialty and ocular surface at University Hospital Necker-Enfants malades and Paris University in Paris.
Dr Paul Gifford

Dr Paul Gifford is a research scientist and industry innovator based in Brisbane, Australia. Director of Myopia Profile.com
Tim Grant

Optometrist and experienced executive in vision care industry, Chair of the Advisory Board at the Centres of Research Excellence at University of New South Wales and board member of Optometry Australia.
Assoc Prof Lisa Ostrin

Associate Professor at the University of Houston College of Optometry.

Dr Sotiris Plainis

Research Fellow at the Laboratory of Optics and Vision (LOV), School of Medicine, University of Crete and a visiting Research Fellow of Aston University.
Dr Hema Radhakrishnan

Senior Lecturer in Optometry, Faculty of Biology Medicine & Health, University of Manchester and registered optometrists in the UK.
Prof Mark Rosenfield

Professor at the State University of New York (SUNY) College of Optometry. Serves as the Editor in Chief of Ophthalmic and Physiological optics.
Prof Tien Wong

Professor at Tsinghua University, ophthalmologist and physician-scientist.
Prof Lan Weizhong

Ophthalmologist and professor at Central South University, China and the vice director of Aier Institute of Optometry and Vision Science.
Prof Xu Xun

Doctoral Supervisor at the Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, School of Medicine and director of the National Clinical Research Center for Eye Diseases.

Prof Padmaja Sankaridurg

Prior to joining ZEISS, Professor Sankaridurg was Head of the Myopia Program and Head of Intellectual Property at the Brien Holden Vision Institute in Sydney, Australia. She was awarded her B.Opt. degree from the Elite School of Optometry, Chennai, India in 1989, PhD in 1999 from the University of New South Wales, Australia, and a Masters in Intellectual Property in 2012 from University of Technology, Australia. She is a Conjoint Professor at the School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

Professor Sankaridurg has been researching myopia for over two decades. She participated as an expert at the WHO-BHVI global meeting of myopia, 2015 and an advisory board member of the International Myopia Institute until 2023. Vision Monday named her as one of the “Women of Influence in the Optical Industry Innovator section” in 2018. Professor Sankaridurg has published over 100 articles in peer reviewed journals; is an inventor or co-inventor on many patents/applications; has authored several book chapters; supervised MSc and PhD students to completion and presents extensively at national and international meetings. Her research interests include myopia onset and progression, strategies to control myopia and the economic burden of myopia.

About ZEISS

ZEISS is an internationally leading technology enterprise operating in the fields of optics and optoelectronics. In the previous fiscal year, the ZEISS Group generated annual revenue totaling 10 billion euros in its four segments Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology, Industrial Quality & Research, Medical Technology and Consumer Markets (status: 30 September 2023).

For its customers, ZEISS develops, produces and distributes highly innovative solutions for industrial metrology and quality assurance, microscopy solutions for the life sciences and materials research, and medical technology solutions for diagnostics and treatment in ophthalmology and microsurgery. The name ZEISS is also synonymous with the world's leading lithography optics, which are used by the chip industry to manufacture semiconductor components. There is global demand for trendsetting ZEISS brand products such as eyeglass lenses, camera lenses and binoculars.

With a portfolio aligned with future growth areas like digitalization, healthcare and Smart Production and a strong brand, ZEISS is shaping the future of technology and constantly advancing the world of optics and related fields with its solutions. The company's significant, sustainable investments in research and development lay the foundation for the success and continued expansion of ZEISS' technology and market leadership. ZEISS invests 15 percent of its revenue in research and development – this high level of expenditure has a long tradition at ZEISS and is also an investment in the future.

With around 43,000 employees, ZEISS is active globally in almost 50 countries with around 30 production sites, 60 sales and service companies and 27 research and development facilities (status: 30 September 2023). Founded in 1846 in Jena, the company is headquartered in Oberkochen, Germany. The Carl Zeiss Foundation, one of the largest foundations in Germany committed to the promotion of science, is the sole owner of the holding company, Carl Zeiss AG.

Further information at www.zeiss.com

ZEISS Vision Care
ZEISS Vision Care is one of the world's leading manufacturers of eyeglass lenses and ophthalmic instruments. The unit is allocated to the Consumer Markets segment and develops and produces offerings for the entire eyeglass value chain that are distributed globally under the ZEISS brand.

Further Information

Press Contact Maria Conrad International PR: Eyeglass Lenses, Coatings and Materials

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