Implantable Retinal Prosthesis Allows 30 Legally Blind People To See Light As Phosphenes

Medscape (5/9, Osterweil) reported that “an implantable retinal prosthesis (Argus II, Second Sight Medical, Sylmar, California) has allowed 30 legally blind patients to see light as phosphenes, and has helped some improve their orientation and mobility in daily tasks, investigators reported” at a vision research meeting. Medscape explained, “The Argus II retinal prosthesis system couples a 60-electrode grid implanted in the retina with a spectacle-worn video camera and a visual processing unit that users can wear around the neck or waist. The visual information is sent wirelessly from the camera to the processing unit, which converts the information into pattern stimulation.”