Retinal implant restores usable central vision in geographic atrophy

A tiny electronic implant placed beneath the retina restored useful central vision for most participants in a multicenter European trial, enabling many to read letters, numbers and words after having lost sight to advanced age related macular degeneration, researchers reported. The 2 millimeter by 2 millimeter microchip, about half the thickness of a human hair, was implanted in 38 elderly patients at hospitals in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands, and the study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The patients all had geographic atrophy, a late stage of dry age related macular degeneration in which cells in the central retina die and patients develop a dark central blind spot while retaining peripheral vision. After the implant and use of an augmented reality system consisting of glasses with a video camera and a small waist mounted processor, 84 percent of participants were able to read letters, numbers or words with the artificial vision. Nearly seven in ten reported general satisfaction with the device.

The implant, known as the Prima system, is placed under the central retina in a procedure called a vitrectomy that typically...