The European Commission granted marketing authorisation for Santen Pharmaceutical’s low-dose atropine eye drop Ryjunea to slow paediatric myopia progression, marking the first and only approved therapy for this indication in the EU.Ryjunea — available as a 0.1 mg/mL ophthalmic solution for once-daily administration — is specifically indicated for children aged 3 to 14 years at treatment initiation, having myopia progression of ≥0.5 D per year and a severity of -0.5 D to -6.0 D.Santen secured rights to commercialise the atropine formulation, codenamed SYD-101, in the EU, Middle East and Africa under a licensing agreement with Sydnexis in 2021. “With this approval, ophthalmologists now have an evidence-based medication to help slow the progression of myopia”, said Peter Sallstig, chief medical officer at Santen. The EU clearance — which closely follows a positive opinion adopted by the European drug advisory panel in April — is supported by the pivotal Phase III STAR study, which showed that Ryjunea slowed annual myopia progression by 30% over two years compared with placebo in children aged 3 to 14 years.Sydnexis, which continues to hold US rights to the drug, successfully completed an FDA regulatory filing in March, with a decision expected later this year. “We are excited about our continued interactions with the [FDA] leading up to our October 23 PDUFA date," remarked Patrick Johnson, president of Sydnexis.Santen’s 0.025% variant of the product was earlier approved in Japan and launched in April under the name Ryjusea Mini to slow myopia progression.