Trends in Ophthalmological Patents, 2005-2020

Technological development drives the optimization of therapeutics in ophthalmology, but quantifiable and systematic review of such innovation is lacking. To fill this gap, we characterize trends in ophthalmology-related patents in the United States from 2005 to 2020. Publicly available patent data from the US Patent and Trademark Office was analyzed with the R programming language. Ophthalmology-related patents were identified with a keyword search of their titles and claims text. Temporal trends were assessed with the Mann-Kendall trend test (α = 0.05, two-sided). Of 4.5 million collected patents, some 21,000 (0.5%) were ophthalmology related. The number of annually granted ophthalmology patents increased over time (Mann-Kendall test: z = 4.91; P < 0.001), from 619 patents released in 2005 to 2,019 patents in 2020. Patent counts also increased over time for all ophthalmic subspecialties except oculoplastics, with steepest rises in retina (z = 4.91; P < 0.001) and cornea (z = 4.64; P < 0.001). The most cited patents were in biocompatible intraocular implants and implantable controlled-release drug delivery systems, which underscores particular advancement in therapeutic efficacy and safety in devices used in the treatment and management of common yet debilitating eye conditions. This exploratory analysis reveals hotspots for ophthalmology-related innovation in the United States that may predict current and future growth trends in device development and pharmacologic advancement in ophthalmology, paving the way for more diverse and effective treatment options for preserving vision.