Developments on Retina Implant Research in Europe and the U.S.

A new ray of hope is shining for patients with retina-damaged eyes. Retinitis pigmentosa is an often hereditary, retina-damaging disease that affects about 1.5 million people worldwide. Thus, experts are striving hard to find remedies to this blinding ailment. Retina Implant, SG, got the approval for the extension of the human clinical trial implant outside Germany, particularly Oxford, London, and Budapest.

The implant is a three-millimeter microelectronic microchip with 1,500 light-sensitive photodiodes, amplifiers, and electrodes. According to the patients involved in the trials, their narrow field of vision has been partially restored, providing them with enough acuity to locate light sources.

Retina Implant partnered with Wills Eye Institute in Philadelphia which would assist them in seeking the approval for use from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The company also developed another treatment for early-stage retinitis pigmentosa called Okuvision, which uses electric stimulation to help preserve retinal cells.

For more details, visit http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=retinitis-pigmentosa-retina-implant-tech.