New clinical study – Novaliq NovaTears(R)+Omega-3 eye drops

AFT Pharmaceuticals Limited, Level 1, 129 Hurstmere Road, Takapuna, Auckland 0622, New Zealand
Incorporated in New Zealand ARBN:
ARBN 609 017 969





29 July 2021

New clinical study shows Novaliq NovaTears®+Omega-3 eye drops
is a significantly effective treatment for dry eye disease.
NovaTears®+Omega-3, an innovative dry eye treatment in -licensed and distributed in
Australia and New Zealand by AFT Pharmaceuticals, is a significantly effective
treatment for evaporative Dry Eye Disease (DED), a new clinical study
1
has found.
Dry Eye is multifactorial and common disease. The 2020 Vision Index showed 77% of
Australians have experienced dry eye
2
. More than 85% of patients suffer from some
form of evaporative DED
3
, yet currently there are a limited number of medicines
available to specifically target evaporative DED and relieve ocular symptoms, which
include reddened and inflamed eyes and eyelid margins or encrusted eyelids.
Evaporative DED is caused by excessive tear evaporation due to an abnormal tear
film lipid layer, or dysfunction of the meibomian glands, the sole natural source of tear
lipids producing glands which line the margin of eyelids.
NovaTears®+Omega-3 combines for first time the highly effective tear film stabilizer
perfluorohexyloctane with a high quality, vegan sourced Omega-3 fatty-acid. It was
developed by Germany’s Novaliq and was shown to deliver clinically relevant and
statistically significant improvements in dry eye symptoms in a recent study of 36
patients over eight weeks.
The improvements were evident on a broad range of measures including total
corneal staining (NEI scale)
4
and Tear Film Break-up Time (TBUT)
5
over the course of the
study.
Of particular interest was the Meibomian Gland Assessment (MGD) score which
improved from an entry level score of 7.1 to 3.0 (p<0.0001) over the course of the
study. The latter result supports the hypothesis that the treatment might liquify meibum
secretion excreted from the meibomian glands.
AFT Managing Director Hartley Atkinson said: “Since launching Novaliq’s NovaTears®
in 2018 and NovaTears®+Omega-3 in 2020, demand for the products has grown
rapidly.
“In the last year alone, we have moved from the number three to number two position
in the lubricating eyecare category in Australia
6
with sales growth from the NovaTears
®

range contributing to our growth.

AFT Pharmaceuticals Limited, Level 1, 129 Hurstmere Road, Takapuna, Auckland 0622, New Zealand
Incorporated in New Zealand ARBN:
ARBN 609 017 969

“This study confirms what our customers already know: NovaTears
®
+Omega-3 and
NovaTears
®
are effective treatments that deliver significant improvements in the
symptoms of DED.
“AFT works to improve health by identifying health needs and working with industry
leaders such as Novaliq to distribute clinically proven solutions to improve health
outcomes in our markets.
“Novaliq is leading the way with high quality DED products that are the first of their
kind and offer a significant point of difference to competitors. It is gratifying to be
able to help people who suffer from this debilitating disease.”
Novaliq Managing Director and CEO Christian Roesky Ph.D. said: “Novaliq is focused
on the development and commercialisation of first-and best-in -class ocular
therapeutics. We are delighted with the results of this study, which further affirm our
confidence in NovaTears+Omega-3 and clinical value we bring to patients.
“The product is the only one of its type available and it highlights the success of our
drive to provide enhanced solutions for addressing dry eye. We are delighted our
partner AFT has been so successful in bringing our products to people in Australasia.”
For and on behalf of AFT Pharmaceuticals Limited, Malcolm Tubby, CFO

Footnotes
1. Novaliq multi-centre, single arm, post-market clinical follow-up study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of
NovaTears + Omega-3 (0.2%) eye drops on signs and symptoms of dry eye
2. The 2020 Vision Index, an Optometry Australia initiative “Taking a closer look at Australia’s eye health”, pp.10.
3. Lemp, M.A., Crews, L.A., Bron, A.J., Foulks,G.N. and Sullivan, B.D., 2012. Distribution of aqueous-deficient and
evaporative dry eye in a clinic-based patient cohort: a retrospective study. Cornea, 31(5), pp.472-478.
4. NEI Corneal staining is a measure of corneal and conjunctival damage
5. Tear Film Break Up Time is a measure tear stability and rate of tear loss by evaporation
6. iRi Report MAT 04/07/21 Australia Pharmacy Value


For more information:
Dr Hartley Atkinson Richard Inder
Managing Director The Project
AFT Pharmaceuticals Tel: +64 21 645 643
Tel: +64 9488 0232

About AFT Pharmaceuticals
AFT is a growing multinational pharmaceutical company that develops, markets and
distributes a broad portfolio of pharmaceutical products across a wide range of
therapeutic categories which are distributed across all major pharmaceutical
distribution channels: over-the-counter (OTC), prescription and hospital. Our product
portfolio comprises both proprietary and in-licensed products, and includes patented,
branded and generic drugs. Our business model is to develop and in-license products
for sale by our own dedicated sales teams in our home markets of Australia and New

AFT Pharmaceuticals Limited, Level 1, 129 Hurstmere Road, Takapuna, Auckland 0622, New Zealand
Incorporated in New Zealand ARBN:
ARBN 609 017 969

Zealand and in certain Asian markets, and to out-license our products to local
licensees and distributors to the rest of the world. For more information: aftpharm.com
About Novaliq
Novaliq is a biopharmaceutical company focusing on the development and
commercialization of first- and best-in -class ocular therapeutics based on EyeSol®, the
worldwide first water-free technology. Novaliq offers an industry-leading portfolio
addressing today’s unmet medical needs of millions of patients with eye diseases.
Novaliq GmbH is headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany and Novaliq Inc. has an
office in Cambridge, MA, USA. The long-term shareholder is dievini Hopp BioTech
holding GmbH & Co. KG, an active investor in Life and Health Sciences companies.
More on www.novaliq.com.