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Eye implant allows the blind to see again

An eye implant which has returned partial sight to three blind patients has been developed by scientists.

The device is being hailed as an "unprecedented advance" in visual aids, and could revolutionise the lives of 200,000 people who suffer from the degenerative eye condition retinitis pigmentosa.

The hereditary disease means that light receptors in the eye cease to function, impairing vision.

But scientists working for firm Retinal Implant AG along with the Institute for Ophthalmic Research at the University of Tuebingen, southern Germany, say the implant can help reverse the effects.

The three patients tests in Germany were able to see shapes and objects within days of the implant being installed.

One was even able to identify and find objects placed on a table in front of him, as well as walking around a room independently and approaching people, reading a clock face and differentiating seven shades of grey, reports journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

The implant sits beneath the retina and works as a direct replacement for light receptors lost to the condition.

Because it is internal, it uses the eye's natural image processing capabilities beyond the light detection stage to produce a visual perception in the patient that is stable and follows their eye movements.

Professor Robert MacLaren, of Oxford University, who will carry out trials in Britain next year, said: "This is quite a breakthrough. It is akin to someone paralysed with a spinal injury standing up and walking."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8105605/Eye-implant-allows-the-blind-to-see-again.html

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