88-year-old woman sees after Bionic eye implant

An 88-year-old woman from the United Kingdom could not hide her joy after she was able to see following a bionic implant.

After a lifetime of normal vision, dry age-related macular degeneration caused her to lose sight in one eye.

The woman received the device which was developed by Pixium Vision in France.

The research is supported by the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre at Moorfields and the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology.

 “I am thrilled to be the first to have this implant in the country. I can now enjoy my hobbies of gardening, playing indoor bowls and painting with watercolours. I truly hope that many others will benefit from this too,” the unidentified woman said in a statement released by the hospital's NHS foundation trust.

Mahi Muqit, a surgeon at Moorfields eye hospital, said the success of the operation offers hope of restoration of sight to people affected with age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

“The success of this operation and the evidence gathered through this clinical study will provide the evidence to determine the true potential of this treatment,” Muqit said.

The glasses, which are surgically connected through a chip in the glasses from the person’s retina to the brain, captures the video, which uses artificial intelligence to process the data.

The brain then interprets this signal as if it were a natural vision.

Find more about the device here.