A revolutionary new bionic eye implanted into a 66-year-old blind man in the US has allowed him to `see’ for the first time in 33 years.
Larry Hester was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa when he was in his early 30s. At the time, the degenerative disease that would rob his sight was poorly understood, and there were no known treatments, researchers said.
On October 1, 2014 Hester became only the seventh person in the US to have a socalled bionic eye activated as a visual aid to send light signals to his brain. The device incorporates technology initially developed by researchers at the Duke Eye Centre; its sophisticated features were further enhanced and marketed by a company called Second Sight Medical Products.
Using wireless technology , a sensor is implanted in the eye to pick up light signals sent from a camera mounted on special eyeglasses. Paul Hahn, a retinal surgeon at Duke, implanted the sensor on September 10 and activated the device three weeks later -to the sheer delight of Hester and his family.
Hahn cautioned the device will not restore eyesight, but provide a visual aid that could help Hester distinguish a door from a wall, or a crosswalk painted in a roadway .
–PTI