first bionic eye implanted!

A great first in the UK. The first bionic eye, intended to help people suffering from Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD), was implanted in an 80-year-old man. A success and a huge step forward!

The operation was performed at Manchester Royal Hospital, on Ray Flynn, an 80-year-old Englishman suffering from AMD, the most common cause of vision loss in an adult individual. Before the operation, the patient no longer had central vision. Now, the implanted device allows it to have one at low resolution. This degenerative disease of the retina, with a chronic course, starts after 50 years. It affects the macular region, which is the central area of ​​the retina, leading to a progressive loss of central vision, on which the image of an object is formed when we watch it. There are two forms of AMD:

– “Dry” AMD also called atrophic, which is the most common form of the disease. It slowly develops towards a very significant drop in visual quality. No treatment exists today to heal her.

– The other form is “Wet” AMD, or exudative. In this case, new vessels, called “new vessels”, form more or less quickly under the retina, having for consequence of obstructing vision. Therapeutic solutions exist for this form of degeneration.

The evolution of Age-related Macular Degeneration varies, possibly take a few weeks like years. The result is nevertheless the same, in the long term, the people affected do not no longer recognize a face, can no longer read a book, or use a computer. In England, near 500,000 people suffer from this disease, and in the United States, the figures indicate between 2 and 3 million.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the world's population aged 60 and over is expected to reach 2 billion by 2050. These figures suggest an increase in people with AMD. Hence the interest in taking a close interest in new technologies andArgus II, a retinal prosthesis designed by Second Sight.

The device is in two parts : an internal implant, and external equipment that the patient must wear. The implant is composed of a network of electrodes, which is integrated into the retina, a battery, and a wireless antenna. From the exterior point of view, a pair of glasses, the ones that Ray Flynn is wearing now, equipped in front of a camera and a radio transmitter, as well as a ehealth processing unit to hang on the belt.

The camera record a scene that takes place in front of the person and sends a small electrical signal to the ehealth processing unit. He is then taken back to the glasses, where the transmitter relay to wireless antenna. This circuit will finally allow the ehealth to be “taken out” on the electrode network which charges stimulate the optic nerve. The implanted person will thus be able to follow the movements in front of objects in front of him, see simple shapes, or read large print. For now, Argus II provides a monochrome vision, researchers are currently working on this aspect of the device in order to allow the brain to perceive color.

(Embed) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcC70ATPoR8 (/ embed) 

The prosthesis is not new. She was mainly used to treat retinitis pigmentosa, another cause of vision loss. However, its use on a person with Age-Related Macular Degeneration is a World First.

Source

[ad_2]