Yahoo – AFP,
22 July 2015
Age-related
macular degeneration (AMD) sufferer Ray Flynn pictured wearing a
"bionic
eye" at Manchester Royal Eye Hospital in Manchester, central England
on
July 22, 2015 (AFP Photo)
|
London
(AFP) - A partially sighted British pensioner has had most of his vision
restored thanks to a "bionic eye" -- a device that converts video
images from a miniature camera installed in his glasses to his brain.
The
University of Manchester announced the success of the operation on retired
engineer Ray Flynn in a statement on Wednesday, saying it was a world first for
the 80-year-old's particular condition.
Flynn has
age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a condition which affects over 500,000
people in Britain and is the most common cause of blindness in people aged over
50 in developing countries.
The
condition means that his vision is impaired and he cannot see things directly
in front of him. This prevents him from reading or driving and makes it
difficult for him to recognise faces.
The
statement said Flynn was now looking forward to watching his beloved Manchester
United football team play and doing the gardening.
"Mr
Flynn's progress is truly remarkable... He is seeing the outline of people and
objects very effectively," said Professor Paulo Stanga, who led the
four-hour operation.
"The
dry form of AMD is a common, but untreatable condition. In the Western world,
it is the leading cause of sight loss. Unfortunately, with an ageing
population, it is becoming more common," he said.
The device
was fitted in June and activated on July 1.
Retinal
degenerative diseases like AMD affect more than 30 million people around the
world, according to the US-based Foundation Fighting Blindness (FFB).
Bionic
retinas are no longer restricted to the realm of science fiction and already
help blind or partially blind people affected by other conditions.
The
technology has already been used on dozens of people with retinitis pigmentosa
(RP).
The
technology turns images captured by the camera into small electrical pulses,
which are transmitted wirelessly to electrodes on the retina surface.
The
electrodes then stimulate the remaining cells and replicate patterns of light
for the brain, which will eventually be interpreted fully by Flynn, allowing
him to regain vision.
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