Restoration of Limited Sight to the Blind
About twenty-five million people, six million in the United States alone, have lost most or all of their vision due to diseases such as “retinitis pigmentosa" (RP), and macular degeneration (MD). "Retinitis pigmentosa" (RP) is the slow deterioration of retinal receptor cells, known as rods and cones. These retinal receptor cells are significant in capturing and translating light into an electrical pulse, which the brain then interprets as an image. Macular degeneration (MD) involves damage to the center of the retina and the loss of central vision. As a result, the patient can not focus clearly on objects that are straight ahead. As time progresses, driving, reading and face recognition are all damaged by macular degeneration(MD).
Recently, U.S. researchers have been exploring this new high-tech implant, which has restored at least some sight to people blinded by eye disease. “The prototype artificial retina used an array of 16 electrodes surgically inserted into a diseased eye to function as light-sensitive surrogates for damaged retinal photoreceptor cells.” Six blind patients gained limited ability to distinguish light, see motion, and recognize general shapes and objects from these implants. The second generation retinal prosthesis will be fitted with 60 electrodes, which is an increase that the researchers say will offer the blind the opportunity to acquire higher-resolution sight. Both the original and current versions of the retinal implants are intended to communicate with an external camera and computer. As of right now, when they put those electrodes and stimulate the retina, people can only see spots of light, transforming those spots of light into true images has not yet been achieved. I find this article interesting because eye problems seem to affect a lot of people. Hopefully, someday in the future through this new research and others we will be able to find a treatment to correct poor eyesight and blindness.
Source: http://health.msn.com/healthnews/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100156314
Recently, U.S. researchers have been exploring this new high-tech implant, which has restored at least some sight to people blinded by eye disease. “The prototype artificial retina used an array of 16 electrodes surgically inserted into a diseased eye to function as light-sensitive surrogates for damaged retinal photoreceptor cells.” Six blind patients gained limited ability to distinguish light, see motion, and recognize general shapes and objects from these implants. The second generation retinal prosthesis will be fitted with 60 electrodes, which is an increase that the researchers say will offer the blind the opportunity to acquire higher-resolution sight. Both the original and current versions of the retinal implants are intended to communicate with an external camera and computer. As of right now, when they put those electrodes and stimulate the retina, people can only see spots of light, transforming those spots of light into true images has not yet been achieved. I find this article interesting because eye problems seem to affect a lot of people. Hopefully, someday in the future through this new research and others we will be able to find a treatment to correct poor eyesight and blindness.
Source: http://health.msn.com/healthnews/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100156314
posted by Maame Boakye at 12:46 PM
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