ARAGONA Pasquale

Pasquale Aragona MD, PhD, was born in Messina the 30th of May 1960. He is Full Professor and Chairman of Ophthalmology at the Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Messina, Italy, Head of the Eye Clinic of the Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria “G. Martino” of Messina, Italy;
Director of the School of Specialization in Ophthalmology and President of the School of Orthoptics and Assistance in Ophthalmology and of the University of Messina;
Head of the Regional Excellence Centre for Ocular Surface Diseases and the Regional Centre for Rare diseases in Ophthalmology at the University of Messina;
-Education: Medical Doctor degree, magna cum laude, at the University of Messina in 1985;
Specializations in Ophthalmology in 1989, magna cum laude, and in Clinical Pharmacology in 1994, magna cum laude, at the University of Messina;
Doctorate Diploma, magna cum laude, in Ophthalmology and Surgical Correction of the Refractive Errors at the University of Padua, Italy;
In the 1987 and 1991 he was attached to the Institute of Ophthalmology of the University of London and External Eye Diseases and Contact Lens Departments of the Moorfield’s Eye Hospital in London (UK).
-Clinically, he specializes in the medical and surgical treatment of ocular surface diseases and of the anterior segment of the eye.
-He is Past-President of the Italian Society of Dacriology and Ocular Surface (SIDSO), founding member and member of the Board of the following scientific Societies: European Dry Eye Society (EuDES); Società Oftalmologi Universitari (SOU); Società Italiana Uveiti e Infiammazioni Oculari (SIUMIO); Società Italiana di Dacriologia e Superficie Oculare (SIDSO); member of the board of the Società Oftalmologica Siciliana (SOSi); Società Italiana di Contattologia Medica (SICOM).
-Organizer of several International and National Congresses.
-Member of the following European Research groups in Ocular Surface Diseases: OCEAN, ODYSSEY, ECOS-G. Regional Representative for the Tear Film and Ocular Surface (TFOS) Society (2004-2010) and member of the TFOS Medical and Scientific Advisory Board (2010-2013); He participated to the Meibomian Gland Dysfunction Workshop (2009-2011) and the second TFOS Dry Eye Work-Shop (2015-2017).
-Associate Editor of Acta Ophthalmologica (Q1) and European Journal of Ophthalmology (Q2). Reviewer for the principal journals in Ophthalmology; he is in the Editorial Board of several International Journal of Ophthalmology and is the author of more than 200 scientific papers published in the most relevant Journals in the field of Ophthalmology.
-He is recipient of the following Prizes: Italian Ophthalmological Society Prize for Pure Research in 1996; Amber–Silver Medal of the Polish Cornea Symposium in 2011; Amber-Gold Medal of the Polish Cornea Symposium in 2015 and Gold Medal of the Calabrian Ophthalmological Society in 2019.
He as act as Principal Investigator in many clinical trials regarding the ocular surface. Here are reported some of them carried out in the last few years:
1. Studio NovagaliNVG06C103 “A phase III, Multicenter, Randomized, controller, double-masked trial of NOVA22007 (Ciclosporin 0.1%) Ophthalmic Cationic Emulsion versus Vehicle in patients with Moderate to severe dry eye syndrome”. Studio Siccanove. 2007-2009 . NCT00814515
2. Studio Spontaneo che valuta l’ efficacia di un’emulsione cationica oftalmica senza conservanti nel
miglioramento dei segni e dei sintomi in pazienti con Sindrome dell’Occhio secco moderata. Uno studio randomizzato, controllato, in cieco (Osservatore)
3. Studio Spontaneo: “Studio Clinico che valuta l’efficacia di un’emulsione oftalmica cationica senza conservanti nel miglioramento dei segni e dei sintomi in pazienti sottoposti a Chirurgia Rifrattiva con Cheratectomia Fotorefrattiva (PRK). Uno studio randomizzato , controllato, in cieco (Osservatore)”.
4. Trial Clinico “ Studio multicentrico, controllato, randomizzato, in doppio cieco che valuta l’efficacia e la sicurezza della Ciclosporina in collirio in pazienti con Pemfigoide Cicatriziale Oculare “ Studio AIFA Eudract Code FARM6AS8AW .
5. Trial Clinico “ Uno studio multicentrico, randomizzato, in doppio cieco, tre gruppi paralleli, controllato con placebo per valutare l’efficacia e la sicurezza di Nova22007 1 mg/ml (Ciclosporina) collirio, emulsione somministrata a pazienti pediatrici con severa Cheratocongiuntivite Vernal attiva con cheratite severa.” Novagali NVG09B113- 2013
6. Trial Clinico “Uno studio multicentrico, in doppio cieco, randomizzato, che compara la sicurezza e l’efficacia di una formulazione oftalmica con OptiveDM monodose per 3 mesi in soggetti con Malattia dell’Occhio Secco. Eudract Number: 2012-002238-35
7. An eight-week Phase I / II study, multicentre, randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled, parallel groups with open follow-up of 48 or 56 weeks to compare the safety and efficacy of two doses (10pg / Ml and 20 μg / ml) recombinant human nervous growth factor, versus vehicle in patients with neurotrophic keratitis at stage 2 or 3. Eudract 2012-002527-15
8. APOLLO a Phase 3 Multicenter, Multinational, randomized,double-blind, placebo controlled study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ALN-TTR02 in transthyretin (TTR) mediated polyneuropathy (Familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy- FAP). Nov 2013-Aug 2017. NCT01960348 Eudract 2013-002987-17
9. ISIS: A phase 2/3 randomized, double blind, placebo controlled study to assess the efficacy and safety of ISIS 420915 in patients with Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy. Mar 2013 – Nov 2017. Eudract No: 2012-001831- 30
10. ALN-TTR02-006: PATISIRAN OPEN LABEL EXTENSION STUDY: A Multicenter, Open-Label, Extension Study to Evaluate the Long-term Safety and Efficacy of Patisiran in Patients With Familial Amyloidotic Polyneuropathy Who Have Completed a Prior Patisiran Clinical Study. NCT02510261 July 2015-Ongoing
11. LEVODESA_04-2017 Titolo: An International, multicenter, randomized, blinded-assessor, parallel-group clinical study comparing eye drops of combined levofloaxin +dexamethasone for 7 days followed by dexamethasone alone for an additional 7 days vs tobramycin+dexamethasone for 14 days for the prevention. Codice EudraCT 2018-000286-36. Sept 2018 –Dec 2018
12. Protocol NVG14L127. A phase IIIb, prospective, interventional, multicentre, three-year study to explore the long-term evolution of sign and symptoms, and occurrence of complications in dry eye disease patients with severe keratitis receiving ikervis® (1mg/ml ciclosporin) eye drops. May 2019- Ongoing
14. Studio multicentrico, randomizzato, in doppio mascheramento, controllato con Placebo di Fase II per valutare la sicurezza e l’efficacia di Pro-ocular™ 0.5% e 1 %in pazienti con sindrome dell’occhio secco (Progesterone Gel Innovative Forehead Therapy-ProGIFT) . Codice Eudract:2019-000747-27. Ongoing
15. Efficacy, Safety and Pharmacokinetics of 3 Doses of REC 0/0559 Eye Drops for the Treatment of Stage 2 (Moderate) and 3 (Severe) Neurotrophic Keratitis in Adult Patients. EudraCT Number: 2019-002475-34