BETHESDA, MD, December 3, 2019 — RightEye LLC, an award-winning health technology company that uses eye-tracking technology to measure and analyze eye movement behavior, today announced that the RightEye Vision System has received Breakthrough Device Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The FDA’s Breakthrough Device Program was designed to streamline the market clearance and approval process for certain medical devices that provide for more effective treatment or diagnosis of life-threatening or irreversibly debilitating diseases or conditions. RightEye has received the first and only Breakthrough Device Designation for a device that uses objective eye movement measurements to aid in the assessment of Parkinson’s disease.
The Challenge
No single test is capable of definitively diagnosing Parkinson’s disease. Doctors instead rely on a variety of neurological examinations designed to confirm the clinical diagnosis, and misdiagnosis remains a continuing issue for the health community.
“When assessing Parkinson’s disease, 60% of patients are misdiagnosed at least once, with one third of patients misdiagnosed twice 1 . That is a terrifying and unacceptable statistic in the age of modern medicine,” stated George Gitchel, Ph.D., Director of Clinical Research at the Southeast Parkinson’s Disease Research, Education, and Clinical Center (PADRECC), at the Richmond Veterans Affairs Medical Center. “In my experience Parkinson’s patients often struggle for years, going from doctor to doctor trying to get a correct diagnosis. By providing quantitative, objective data to assist clinicians, I truly believe that RightEye will play a key role addressing this issue, while its FDA Breakthrough Designation will accelerate availability.”
The Solution
Research has demonstrated that patients with Parkinson’s disease exhibit persistent ocular tremors that prevent stability during fixation 2 . Oculomotor testing designed to identify these ocular tremors, may not only support doctors in diagnosing of the disease but may also help detect the disease at an earlier stage since ocular tremors are often detectable well before other commonly recognized symptoms of the disease surface.
The RightEye Vision System received FDA clearance in October 2018 for recording, viewing, and analyzing eye movements in support of identifying visual tracking impairment in patients. The data provided by this eye-tracking technology has also demonstrated value in helping doctors uncover eye movement deficiencies or anomalies that can be indicators for a variety of oculomotor and neurological issues.
“With this FDA Breakthrough Device Designation, RightEye has an opportunity to address a critical unmet need in the fight against Parkinson’s Disease,” said Adam Gross, co-founder and CEO at RightEye. “The annual cost of Parkinson’s disease in America is estimated at approximately $52 billion. 3 Earlier assessment, intervention, and more accurate diagnoses is anticipated to reduce these costs, while also improving patient outcomes and quality of life.”
About RightEye LLC
RightEye LLC is an eye movement behavior biomarker company using eye-tracking technology to revolutionize health care and vision performance through innovative vision tests and vision training programs. RightEye tests help health care providers assess vision and eye tracking issues by following an evidence-based, metrics-driven methodology. Using a cloud-based platform, RightEye provides data-rich reports that offer an objective, measurable way to view the quality of a person’s eye movement and monitor the success of various treatments. RightEye’s EyeQ Trainer provides an effective oculomotor training program that remains under the doctor’s oversight. RightEye customers include nationally recognized optometrists, hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, emergency rooms, professional sports teams and the U.S. military. For more information, visit www.RightEye.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Sources:
1: Hughes AJ, Daniel SE, Ben-Shlomo Y, Lees AJ. The Accuracy of diagnosis of parkinsonian syndromes in a specialist movement disorder service. Brain 2002, 125:861-870
2: (Source: Arch Neurol/Vol 69(8), 2012)
3: 2019 study conducted by The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF), with Parkinson’s Foundation, AbbVie Inc., ACADIA Pharmaceuticals, Acorda Therapeutics, Adamas Pharmaceuticals, and Biogen Inc., along with American Parkinson Disease Association and The Parkinson Alliance https://www.michaeljfox.org/news/study-finds-parkinsons-52-billion-economic-burden-double-previous-estimates
