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17 Jun 2002
US doctors have inserted photodiodes into the eyes of blind patients in a bid to restore eyesight.
A team of eye surgeons led by Alan Chow of US-based Optobionics has implanted silicon chips into the eyes of three patients blinded by retinal disease. The pin-head sized chips are designed to restore sight by kick-starting any remaining retina cells into action.
The chips, pioneered by Alan Chow and his brother Vincent, an electrical engineer, consist of approximately 3500 micro-photo diodes. Acting as artifical retinas, each photodiode converts incident light into electro-chemical signals to trigger the remaining retinal cells into processing images.
Chow's method is different to fellow eye-scientists as his chips actually sit behind the retina whereas other sight-saving implants are positioned on the retina's surface. Having already implanted the "subretinal" chips into three patients, he believes that the latest spate of operations will drive his technique forward.
"We've had more than a year to follow the original three patients and have important information relating to how these chip function," he said. "Implanting three additional patients will give us a larger statistical base to evaluate and understand the results."
The chip is designed to treat conditions known as outer retinal disease, but cannot help conditions such as glaucoma, where the nerve fibers leading to the optic nerve are damaged. Chow says that although it is too early to report complete safety in his studies, he is confident that within several months this will change.
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