Science and Medicine

Australia: Positive Tests - Genetically Blind may get Limited Vision

ERS developing a "bionic eye" say that early tests have succeeded in stimulating limited visual sensation in people suffering from a rare form of genetic blindness. Scientists from the Bionic Eye Foundation at Sydney's Prince of Wales Hospital have launched human clinical trials of the device, which employs the same technology now routinely used in cochlear implants to restore hearing.

Professor Minas Coroneo said the trials involved placing small electrodes on the surface of the eye and then using an electric current to stimulate the retina i.e. the thin layer of cells in the back of the eye that respond to light.

A video camera attached to a pair of glasses is used to pick up images and transfer them to the electro codes then layer via a computer. The electro codes then stimulate the retina to send the message down the optic nerve to the visual area of the brain.

While it does not offer full sight, Coroneo said it could one day provide blind people with enough "functional vision" to negotiate their way across a room without bumping into the object.

"The patient will see a pattern of flashes that will outline objects;" he said. The prototype does not require invasive surgery.

Source: Bionic eye tests show promise, The Hindustan Times, Daily, New Delhi, 4 Sep 2006.