For people who have lost their central vision to eye disease, the inability to read is often one of the most devastating parts of the experience, taking away everything from books and labels to phone numbers and handwritten notes in an instant. But a tiny wireless chip smaller than a pencil eraser may be about to change all of that for good. In a landmark clinical trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers tested a device called the PRIMA implant in 38 older adults who had lost central vision to age-related macular degeneration, one of the most common causes of permanent blindness in people over 60. The chip, just two millimeters wide, is surgically placed beneath the retina where it acts as an electronic replacement for the light-sensing cells that the disease has quietly and irreversibly destroyed over time.
Patients also wear a pair of specialized glasses fitted with a small camera that wirelessly transmits images directly to the implant using near-infrared light, allowing the entire system to operate without a single wire or external connection inside the eye itself. After one year, participants gained an average of five full lines on a standard eye chart, and 27 of them were actively using their restored central vision at home to read numbers and short words in their daily lives. While the device does not restore full natural sight and currently only functions when the glasses are being worn, the results mark a stunning step forward for millions of people who had accepted permanent vision loss as an unchangeable part of their future. The company behind the implant is now seeking approval in Europe and working closely with the FDA to explore bringing this life-changing technology to patients in the United States as well.
Source: https://www.earth.com/news/wireless-eye-implant-helps-blind-patients-read-again/
