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Avellino to launch keratoconus screening test in Asia
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Avellino Labs announced it will launch a keratoconus screening test in Korea, Japan and China in the first quarter of 2017, according to a press release from the company.
In a recent study, Avellino Labs used next-generation sequencing to examine DNA collected from more than 200 keratoconus patients from various clinics and institutions around the world.
The company identified four DNA variants within the three different genes that conferred genetic risk factors in 9% to 21% of patients within the study group, according to the release.
The screening test will screen for the four mutations for use in Korea, Japan and China.
"At Avellino Labs we are excited to be able to offer the first genetic predictor of relative risk of keratoconus in Asian eyes, ... the Avellino DNA Test represents a sea change detecting keratoconus early in order to inform surgeons performing laser vision correction and to improve keratoconus patient care," John Marshall, PhD, FRCPath, FMEdSci, medical advisory board member at Avellino Labs and Frost professor of ophthalmology at UCL Institute of Ophthalmology at Moorfields Eye Hospital, said in the release.
The company aims to provide a comprehensive diagnostic assay to determine a definitive risk factor for keratoconus for patients on a global level.