Blind Man Fitted With ‘Bionic Eye’ Can Now See
A blind man who thought he would never be able to read again has had his vision partially restored after being fitted with a ‘bionic’ eye.
Peter Lane, 51, is one of the first people in the world to have electronic receivers implanted into his eye which send signals mounted in a pair of glasses to the brain.
The technology has allowed Mr. Lane, from Manchester, to see the outline of objects, such as doorways and furniture, and to read letters through a series of dots of lights for the first time in almost 30 years.
‘I’m just reading small words at the moment, but it’s a start. The doctors have said they’ll get me a screen so I can read at home and I’m hoping I’ll be able to read letters I get in the post by myself eventually.
‘I get around inside my flat okay without the glasses because I know where everything is, but outside they give me more confidence and a bit more independence.
‘The images I see move and that takes a bit of getting used to, but I can see cars - they look like cotton wool. It’s exciting to be part of the trial.’
Mr. Lane is one of just 32 people taking part in a worldwide trial of the technology which aims to help those with retinitis pigmentosa, a group of genetic eye diseases affecting the retina which cause progressive loss of vision over decades.
Around 25,000 people are affected by the conditions in Britain alone.
The ‘bionic eye’ works by fitting a camera in a pair of glasses, which then captures the image and sends the information to a video processor worn by the patient on a belt. The processor converts the image into an electronic signal which is then sent to a transmitter, also fitted to the glasses
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