Data from Phase 1 Study of Mentor's Botulinum Toxin Type A Product to Be Presented at American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Meeting; Friday, September 23, 2005, at 5:10 PM, PDT.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- Mentor Corporation (NYSE:MNT), a leading supplier of medical products in the United States and internationally, announced that data from a phase 1 dose escalation study of its botulinum toxin type A product will be presented today, Friday, September 23, 2005 at 5:10 PM, PDT, during the Annual Fall Meeting of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in Los Angeles, California.

"Botulinum toxin type A has been shown to have a longer duration of effectiveness, to have more comfortable injections for patients, and to require lower doses than other immunotypes," commented Kenneth Buchwach, M.D., F.A.C.S, principal investigator of the study. "The data from the phase 1 study, while early, are encouraging and suggest that this new alternative may provide benefit for patients beyond currently available products."

The single center, open-label, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single dose, phase 1 study enrolled 40 patients at 4 doses. Patients exhibited a dose-related improvement at forced frown and at rest, with higher doses providing a longer duration of action. All doses were found to be well tolerated and no serious adverse events were reported.

About Mentor Corporation

Founded in 1969, Mentor Corporation is a leading supplier of medical products for the global healthcare market. The Company develops, manufactures and markets innovative, science-based products for the aesthetics, urologic specialties and clinical and consumer healthcare markets around the world. The Company's website is www.mentorcorp.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

All statements included or incorporated by reference in this release, other than statements or characterizations of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs and certain assumptions made by us. Forward-looking statements can often be identified by words or phrases such as "encouraging", "suggest", "may provide", "anticipates," "scheduled," "expects," "intends," "plans," "predicts," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "is confident," "may," "will," "should," "would," "could," "potential," "in the future," "continue," similar expressions, and variations or negatives of these words. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof and are based upon the information available to us at this time. Such information is subject to change, and we will not necessarily inform you of such changes. These statements are not guarantees of future results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, our actual results could differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statement as a result of various factors.

The Securities and Exchange Commission filings of Mentor, including, without limitation, its Annual Reports on Form 10-K, subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and recent Current Reports on Form 8-K, discuss important risk factors that could contribute to such differences or otherwise affect its business, results of operations and financial condition. Mentor undertakes no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statement for any reason.