Allergan acquires minimally invasive glaucoma shunt

Allergan Plc. has completed purchase of AqueSys and its minimally invasive soft shunt for glaucoma, XEN45, in an all-cash transaction, including a $300 million up-front payment.

The XEN45 is implanted in the anterior chamber using a single-use, pre-loaded injector.

In late-stage development in the United States, XEN45 has received a CE mark in the European Union where it is used to reduce IOP in primary open-angle glaucoma. The CE mark allows treatment in conjunction with a cataract procedure or as a standalone procedure. XEN45 is also approved for use in Turkey, Canada and Switzerland. The  U.S. study is fully-enrolled and expected to be completed in late 2016.

"In my glaucoma patients, I see a tremendous need for products that can help improve the process and compliance of treatment, in a minimally invasive way," said Ike Ahmed, MD, University of Toronto. "XEN45 provides just that – a minimally invasive procedure that helps to lower IOP effectively while minimizing the need for patients to remember, and be compliant with, their treatment. It's an important innovation for the glaucoma treatment community. " 

In this interview from ASCRS 2015, Dr. Davinder Grover discusses new approaches to glaucoma filtering surgery, including the XEN45.