Groundbreaking Vision-Restoring Research Proves Effective

Published Mon, Aug 20th, 2012   Wall Street Daily Research

Back in May we told you about a retinal implant developed by Stanford scientists to restore eyesight.

The researchers implant the chip in the retina, and it acts like a solar panel. Special glasses send images as infrared light to the chip, creating an electrical signal and restoring some light sensitivity.

Like Jim Loudin of Stanford says, “Infrared light is picked up by this implant which is a bunch of solar cells underneath the retina. That light is then converted to an electrical current and that electricity stimulates the retina and restores some visual sensation to an otherwise blind patient.”

Now, after testing the technology on blind rats, the researchers have proven that the device can, indeed, form images in the brain.

At this point, the scientists need to determine the quality of images that a patient will be seeing. The problem is, who can tell if a rat’s vision is improving?

Well, that’s something else the researchers think they’ve solved…