Ocular Therapeutix's Late-stage Trial Of Pink Eye Treatments Fails To Meet Objective

Ocular Therapeutix Inc. said Monday that a second Phase 3 trial of its treatment for chronic allergic conjunctivitis failed to achieve its single primary endpoint. The stock, which is halted for news, is scheduled to resume trade at 7:30 a.m. ET. The trial was to evaluate Ocular's Dextenza Intracanalicular Depot, or sustained release dexamethasone, for treating itching associated with chronic pink eye. The endpoint was defined as a difference in mean scores in ocular itching between the treatment group and a group using a placebo at different time points seven days following insertion of the depots. "We are disappointed that the primary endpoint of ocular itching associated with allergic conjunctivitis was not achieved in our second Phase 3 trial in these patients, and this result is inconsistent with what we saw in our first Phase 3 trial," said Chief Executive Amar Sawhney. The stock has run up 26% year to date through Friday, while the S&P 500 has gained 2.7%.