Valeant Pharmaceuticals is in the process of acquiring Bausch + Lomb for $8.7 billion. If the deal is OK’d, Bausch + Lomb will retain its name and become a division of Valeant, whose existing ophthalmology businesses will be integrated into the Bausch + Lomb division, creating a global eye health platform with estimated pro forma 2013 net revenue of more than $3.5 billion. Until the transaction is finalized, “there will be no immediate changes to day-to-day operations,” says Adam Grossberg, B+L’s vice president of global communications and branding. He expects the deal to close sometime during the third quarter of this year.
A new study reports that omega-3s significantly reduce dry eye symptoms. Published online by Ophthalmology, the study found that dry eye patients who took two daily omega-3 capsules (each containing 180mg eicosapentaenoic acid and 120mg docosahexaenoic acid) had a 71% improvement in tear film break-up time after one month. Also, their scores on the Ocular Surface Disease Index improved by 26% and their Schirmer’s scores improved by 22.3%.
Researchers have developed spray-on technology that could be used as a negative-index flat lens. This could revolutionize the way optical lenses are made and used, they report in the journal Nature. A negative-index flat lens like this could transfer image details that are substantially smaller than the wavelength of light. This could create images of higher resolution than are possible with lenses made of positive-index materials such as glass.
