Hearing / Vision / Dental

Dental Corporation Public Company Limited, or D, has met the criteria of the Stock Exchange of Thailand and will move from the Market for Alternative Investment, or mai, to trade on the SET in the Services industry group, Medical business sector, starting October 1, 2026, after more than 9 years listed on mai. Chief Executive Officer Pornsak Tantapakul, together with the company's board and executives, joined in congratulating the occasion. The company stated that the move to the SET reflects the organization's growth and potential, from its beginnings as a Thai family business to a listed company in the capital market, and that over the past 9 years it has used funds raised to expand its business, generating growth in revenue, net profit, and shareholders' equity. The Dental Corporation group operates a full-service dental business, covering dental hospitals, the Bangkok International Dental Hospital, or BIDH, dental centers, Smile Signature dental clinics, and Dental Planet dental clinics, as well as Dental Vision Company Limited, a subsidiary that distributes dental materials and equipment.

SpyGlass Pharma, Inc. announced today it has acquired all outstanding shares of common stock of Advanced Vision Science, Inc., an ophthalmic medical device company and manufacturer of intraocular lenses and lens materials, for approximately $13 million in cash. AVS was a wholly owned subsidiary of Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and is the current supplier of the intraocular lens used in SpyGlass Pharma's two Phase 3 registrational trials evaluating the BIM-IOL System. The acquisition secures scalable commercial intraocular lens manufacturing capacity for SpyGlass Pharma's lead product candidate and accelerates its pathway to adding premium lens options into its intraocular-lens-based drug delivery system. Under the agreement, AVS will be the exclusive manufacturer and supplier of several types of intraocular lenses to Santen for commercialization in Japan, and will continue to license its glistening-free hydrophobic acrylic lens material to Bausch + Lomb for use in the enVista intraocular lens line and manufacture products for other global intraocular lens companies. SpyGlass Pharma said it intends to continue supporting AVS customers and licensees utilizing their proprietary intraocular lens material technology, such as Santen, Bausch + Lomb, and other global intraocular lens companies.

Neuromod Devices has announced the appointment of Joe Ghiz as Chief Commercial Officer and Shannon Basham as VP of Channel Development. Ghiz joins Neuromod's senior management team and will lead the company's global commercial function as it continues to strengthen its position as the category creator in tinnitus care, with CEO Dr. Ross O'Neill citing robust clinical evidence, global regulatory approval, and broad commercial adoption as positioning the company for rapid scaling to address the needs of 740 million tinnitus sufferers worldwide. Ghiz joins from Align Technology, the company behind Invisalign, where he helped create and scale the clear aligner category and built a $10 billion company, and previously spent over a decade at Johnson & Johnson Vision Care in leadership roles spanning sales, marketing, and business development. Basham brings more than 20 years of experience in the hearing care industry, having most recently served as Senior Director of Audiology for Sonova Group in the United States of America, where she was the market-facing head of audiology for the Phonak and Unitron wholesale businesses. The appointments support Neuromod's goal of positioning its non-invasive bimodal neuromodulation tinnitus treatment device, Lenire, as a new standard of care in ENT and audiology practices.

Bernstein has named Sonova as its short-term top pick and Alcon as its preferred long-term idea in a new H2 playbook for European medtech, assigning both "outperform" ratings with price targets of CHF 275 and CHF 76.15, respectively. Sonova, the world's No. 1 player in the $7.7 billion hearing aid wholesale market with roughly a 25% unit share, is expected to benefit from a multi-pronged growth setup into its H1 2026/27E results in November, with Bernstein forecasting H1 wholesale organic growth of 10.1% versus consensus at 8% and Group organic growth of 6.5% versus consensus of 4.9%. The bull case rests on continued strength from the EON Sphere launch, further share gains at Costco, where the Infinio-based device only entered the channel in March 2026, and another seven months of tailwind from Virto R hearing aid sales, plus a sharp H2 improvement in the Cochlear Implant business and accelerating M&A contribution in Retail as rivals Demant and Amplifon remain financially constrained. Bernstein's core EBIT estimates sit 5-8% above consensus across 2026/27E-2028/29E. On Alcon, the dominant ophthalmology player holding #1 or #2 positions across most of its sub-markets, Bernstein argues investor sentiment on the intraocular lens and consumables businesses has become "overly negative" and that the pressure is "largely transitory," expecting implantables growth to accelerate to 4% in 2027. Bernstein's constant-currency revenue growth estimates run 38-112 bps above consensus for 2026E-2028E, with core EPS estimates 1-9% higher, and at roughly 17x NTM P/E it sees an attractive entry point into what it calls a "multi-year compounding business."

Bloomberg reports that Taiwan's population may decline to about 12.15 million by 2075, a drop of roughly 48% from 2026 levels, amid a continued decrease in births and young population, while the number of elderly rises significantly, posing long-term challenges to the labor market, economy, and defense capabilities. Estimates from Taiwan's National Development Council (NDC), based on household registration data, indicate that the working-age population will shrink by nearly two-thirds over the next 50 years. By 2075, the population aged 0-14 will be only 585,000, the working-age population (15-64) will be about 5.13 million, and those aged 65 and above will reach 6.43 million, meaning the elderly will outnumber the working-age population and account for more than half of the total population. These figures reflect risks after the population peaked at 23.6 million in 2019, and could also affect Taiwan's security, as the military still relies partly on conscription amid threats from China.

The European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has recommended approval of Roche's Susvimo for the treatment of neovascular age-related macular degeneration. Susvimo is the first continuous delivery treatment that offers an alternative to standard-of-care eye injections, using the Contivue refillable implant to deliver a customized formulation of ranibizumab with as few as two treatments per year. The positive recommendation is based on data from the LADDER, Archway, and Portal studies showing Susvimo maintained vision equivalent to monthly intravitreal ranibizumab injections, with longer-term data supporting maintenance of vision up to seven years. A final decision from the European Commission is expected in the near future. Neovascular age-related macular degeneration affects 1.7 million people in the European Union and is a leading cause of blindness in people over 60.

BDMS Wellness Clinic, a subsidiary of Bangkok Dusit Medical Services Public Company Limited, or BDMS, has launched the Longevity Card, a personalized health care card valued at 1 million baht, to penetrate the luxury wellness market and elevate Thailand as a global health hub. Members will receive continuous care from a team of doctors and multidisciplinary professionals throughout one year, covering health monitoring programs, early-stage cancer and Alzheimer's risk screening, cellular and genetic analysis, as well as dental and skincare services. The card is available by invitation only with a limited number accepted each year, and is linked to benefits from a network of leading lifestyle and travel partners. Dr. Tanupol Virunhagarun, President of the BDMS Wellness Group Executive Committee, stated that the organization will continue to develop preventive health care technology to drive Thailand toward becoming a sustainable global health and wellness destination.

The global dental services market is projected to reach USD 425.56 billion in 2026 and grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.65% to hit USD 596.85 billion by 2032, according to a new report from ResearchAndMarkets.com. The sector spans general dentistry, orthodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, endodontics, oral surgery, pediatric dentistry, cosmetic dentistry, dental diagnostics, and maintenance services delivered through private practices, group practices, dental service organizations, public health systems, hospitals, and academic clinics. Demand is supported by the high global burden of oral diseases, aging populations, increasing awareness of preventive care, rising adoption of dental implants and clear aligners, and the growing link between oral health and systemic conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, respiratory infection risk, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. The World Health Organization estimates that oral diseases affect 3.5 billion people worldwide, making access to affordable, timely, and quality dental care a core public health priority. The report highlights transformative shifts including digital dentistry, teledentistry, artificial intelligence, minimally invasive procedures, and value-based care models, while noting persistent barriers such as uneven insurance coverage, workforce shortages in rural areas, and disparities in pediatric and geriatric oral healthcare access.

A new report from HealthView Services projects that an average 65-year-old couple retiring in 2026 will pay $688,996 in Medicare premiums over their lifetimes. When additional costs such as hearing, vision, dental, copays, and deductibles are included, the total rises to $955,411. The report notes that healthcare cost inflation is expected to average 5.6% annually, roughly twice the rate of Social Security cost-of-living adjustments. The findings highlight the importance of planning for medical expenses in retirement, as Medicare does not cover all services and requires significant out-of-pocket spending.