Ray Flynn can see clearer now, after receiving the first bionic eye implant for sight loss due to age-related macular degeneration.
The 80-year-old from England lost his central vision, and had trouble with tasks like shopping and gardening. After a four-hour surgery in Manchester, Flynn now has a miniature video camera attached to his glasses, and the images are converted into electrical pulses and transmitted wirelessly to electrodes attached to the retina, BBC News reports. The electrodes then stimulate the retina's remaining cells, which send the information to the brain. Flynn said he is "delighted" by the implant, and is looking forward to getting back to normal life.
The Argus II implant has previously been used in people blinded by a rare condition called retinitis pigmentosa. At least 500,000 people in the UK are affected to some extent by age-related macular degeneration, and Paulo Stanga, consultant ophthalmologist and vitreo-retinal surgeon at Manchester Royal Eye Hospital, is hopeful that the implant could help some of them. "Mr. Flynn's progress is truly remarkable, he is seeing the outline of people and objects very effectively," he said. "I think this could be the beginning of a new era for patients with sight loss."
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