Sight Sciences Announces the Results of a Cost-Utility Analysis Demonstrating Cost Savings and Greater Health Utility with the TearCare® System Compared to Cyclosporine 0.05% for Treating Meibomian Gland Disease-Associated Dry Eye Disease
Cost-Utility Analysis published in the Expert Review of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research
MENLO PARK, Calif., July 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- , Inc. (Nasdaq: SGHT) (Sight Sciences or the Company), an eyecare technology company focused on developing and commercializing innovative technology intended to transform care and improve patients’ lives, today announced the results of a cost-utility analysis (CUA) assessing the cost-effectiveness of the TearCare® System compared to cyclosporine 0.05% (CsA) for the treatment of moderate to severe meibomian gland disease (MGD) associated dry eye disease (DED). The analysis, published ahead of print in Expert Review of Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research, demonstrated that TearCare is not only associated with greater health utility over time but also resulted in significant cost savings compared to CsA, offering a more efficient and patient-centric approach to treating this common ocular disease.
The analysis, conducted from a US healthcare payer perspective using a 1-year time horizon, revealed that TearCare resulted in lower per-patient annual costs ($4,916) and higher quality-adjusted life years (QALYs; 0.76) compared to CsA ($5,819 and 0.74 QALYs, respectively). This translated to per-patient annual cost savings of $903 and an incremental benefit of 0.014 QALYs.
“This cost-utility analysis confirms what many of us in clinical practice have observed,” said Nathan Lighthizer, OD, FAAO, lead investigator of the study and Professor and Dean for the NSU Oklahoma College of Optometry. “TearCare not only improves patient outcomes but also represents a more economically sustainable approach to managing MGD-associated dry eye disease. The demonstrated cost savings of over $900 per patient per year are significant in our current healthcare environment."
Key Findings:
- Assuming two procedures over a 1-year time horizon, TearCare demonstrated a cost-saving advantage over CsA, reducing per-patient costs by $903 annually.
- Patients receiving TearCare experienced an incremental QALY gain of 0.014, compared to those on CsA.
- Scenario analyses confirmed the robustness of the results, showing that even when adjusting assumptions—such as the proportion of patients improving to a milder disease state—TearCare consistently delivered cost savings and greater QALY gains over CsA.
Paul Badawi, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sight Sciences added, “We are excited to see such compelling evidence that highlights both the clinical and cost benefits of TearCare. Our body of clinical data and health economic support for TearCare continues to grow, and this latest analysis builds upon the foundation we have already established. As we work to drive reimbursed patient access to interventional dry eye therapies like TearCare on behalf of patients and the eyecare providers who care for them, robust clinical and health economic support is a core component of our strategy, and milestones such as these represent progress towards delivering this innovative technology to patients in need.”
Authors and affiliations:
Lighthizer N1, Schwertz BK2, Chester T3, Longo R4, Riley P4, Mody L4, Patel C4
1NSU Oklahoma College of Optometry, Tahlequah, OK, USA
2Dry Eye Center of Alabama, Birmingham, AL, USA
3Cleveland Eye Clinic, Brecksville, OH, USA
4AESARA, Inc., Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Paper Reference:
Lighthizer, N., Schwertz, B. K., Chester, T., Longo, R., Riley, P., Mody, L., & Patel, C. (2025). TearCare system versus cyclosporine ophthalmic emulsion for the treatment of moderate-to-severe meibomian gland disease associated dry eye disease in the United States: a cost-utility analysis. Expert Review of Pharmacoeconomics & Outcomes Research. /10.1080/14737167.2025.2537850
About Sight Sciences
Sight Sciences is an eyecare technology company focused on developing and commercializing innovative and interventional solutions intended to transform care and improve patients’ lives. Using minimally invasive or non-invasive approaches to target the underlying causes of the world’s most prevalent eye diseases, Sight Sciences seeks to create more effective treatment paradigms that enhance patient care and supplant conventional outdated approaches. The Company’s and are implant-free, minimally invasive glaucoma surgery technologies indicated in the United States to reduce intraocular pressure in adult patients with primary open-angle glaucoma. The OMNI Surgical System is CE Marked for the catheterization and transluminal viscodilation of Schlemm’s canal and cutting of the trabecular meshwork to reduce intraocular pressure in adult patients with open-angle glaucoma. Glaucoma is the world’s leading cause of irreversible blindness. The is a bladeless, manually operated device used in ophthalmic surgical procedures to excise trabecular meshwork. The Company’s is 510(k) cleared in the United States for the application of localized heat therapy in adult patients with evaporative dry eye disease due to meibomian gland disease (MGD), enabling clearance of gland obstructions by physicians to address the leading cause of dry eye disease. Visit for more information.
Sight Sciences, the Sight Sciences logo, TearCare, SmartHub and SmartLids are trademarks of Sight Sciences registered in the United States. OMNI and SION are trademarks of Sight Sciences registered in the United States, European Union and other territories.
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