LCA says 4th qtr laser vision correction procedures dropped from last year and prior quarter

LCA-Vision says 4Q procedures fell 40 percent

CINCINNATI — Laser vision correction company LCA-Vision Inc. said Tuesday that procedures at its LasikPlus centers continued to plunge in the fourth quarter, dropping 40 percent from the previous year.

LCA said 11,718 procedures were done at its facilities. That compares to 19,424 in the fourth quarter of 2008. It was a 24 percent decline from the third quarter of 2009, when the company said it performed 15,335 procedures. In morning trading, LCA-Vision shares lost 27 cents, or 4.7 percent, to $5.54.

The company reported similar results throughout 2009 amid the recession, which it said sharply reduced demand. It said procedures fell 37 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, 41 percent in the second quarter, and 29 percent in the third quarter.

The company is scheduled to report its full fourth-quarter results on Feb. 9.