| Earnings report out: 
 MONROVIA, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--Nov. 5, 1997--STAAR Surgical Company (NASDAQ:STAA) today
 announced financial results for its third quarter and nine months ended October 3, 1997.
 
 Revenues for the third quarter grew 10% to $11.8 million compared with $10.8 million in the third quarter of 1996.
 During the quarter, operating expenses increased by 7%, generating a 19% increase in operating income to
 $3,346,000, versus $2,810,000 in the same quarter last year.
 
 For the quarter, net income increased 16% to $2,064,000, or $0.15 per share, compared with $1,775,000, or $0.13
 per share, in the same period last year.
 
 For the nine months net income was $5,767,000, or $0.41 per share, on revenue of $34.0 million, versus net income of
 $5,018,000, or $0.36 per share, on $30.7 million in revenue for the comparable period last year. This represents a
 15% increase in net income.
 
 ''Revenue reflects solid performance in our core foldable intraocular lens (IOL) business and international contributions
 of sales of our newest products,'' said Chairman and President John R. Wolf. ''During the quarter we have engineered
 the opening of two new international offices STAAR Surgical AB in Norway and STAAR Surgical AS in Sweden. With
 the cooperation of existing distribution channels combined with our direct marketing agenda, which effectively targets
 and instructs leading surgeons in minimally invasive ophthalmic procedures, these two offices in Scandinavia offer
 significant opportunities for sales inside and outside of our core line of IOL products and provide STAAR with
 increased presence and market share in Europe.''
 
 ''Also, we are pleased with the recent developments relating to the ICL(TM), a deformable intraocular refractive
 corrective lens,'' continued Wolf. ''Phase I of the Hyperopic ICL(TM) FDA study has been completed. The data from
 the study as well as data from the Phase I Myopic ICL(TM) study was very positive. Last week the results of these
 studies were presented at the general session of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) in San Francisco by
 David C. Brown M.D. of Ft. Meyers, Florida. AAO members responded overwhelmingly to the presentation of the
 FDA study data,'' concluded Wolf.
 
 THIS ALL SEEMS WITHIN EXPECTATIONS, RIGHT?  I'M GUESSING NO MAJOR MOVE TOMORROW.
 
 Geoff Wren
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