EMERYVILLE, Calif.—NovaBay Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NYSE American: NBY), a biopharma company focused on commercializing Avenova for the domestic eyecare market, reported net sales of $1.8 million for the second quarter ended June 30. Avenova’s sales in this three-month period were $1.6 million, a 9 percent increase from the first quarter of 2019, according to the company’s announcement Monday. Avenova, which is formulated with a proprietary, stable and pure form of hypochlorous acid, is designed for removal of the microorganisms and debris that contribute to conditions such as meibomian gland dysfunction, dry eye and blepharitis, according to NovaBay.

“The increase in Avenova sales over the prior quarter is particularly impressive given the 67 percent reduction we made to our sales force in March as part of a strategic shift to address the trend toward high-deductible health plans,” NovaBay president and chief executive officer Justin Hall said in the announcement. “Our ability to grow Avenova sales reflects success with our strategy of deploying the remaining 15 sales representatives in territories identified as having significant prescription volume along with favorable reimbursement.”

In the second quarter, NovaBay also introduced a new Avenova Direct channel in which it sells prescription-strength Avenova directly to customers on Amazon. “We expect the greatest growth opportunity to come from this channel,” Hall said.