A blind man from Minnesota has been able to see his wife for the first time in a decade thanks to a device his doctor has described as a "bionic eye."
Allen Zderad, 68, began losing his sight around 20 years ago, due to a degenerative, incurable eye disease, retinitis pigmentosa . By 2005, he had lost almost all of his vision and had to stop working.
But this week Mr Zderad was able to see again, thanks to a groundbreaking procedure performed by surgeons at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
Mr Zderad was fitted with a Second Sight implant, which bypasses the damaged retina and sends light-wave signals to the optic nerve. Mr Zderad also had an electronic chip embedded in his right eye, which works in conjuction with a prosthetic device set in a pair of special glasses.
The patient was soon able to make out shapes, human forms and his own reflection. When he saw his wife sitting in front of him, the pair burst into tears.
Dr Raymond Iezzi Jr, the ophthalmologist who led the procedure, said: "This is great for this family. It’s also very unusual for a scientist like me to be able to actually apply outcomes of what we’ve worked on for years to help a patient. That’s very special.”
Though Mr Zderad, who has become the 15th person in America to receive the implant, will not be able to see finer details, such as people's faces, his quality of life has already dramatically improved. And he says he will always be able to recognise his wife.
“It’s easy,” he said, “she’s the most beautiful one in the room."
Allen Zderad, 68, began losing his sight around 20 years ago, due to a degenerative, incurable eye disease, retinitis pigmentosa . By 2005, he had lost almost all of his vision and had to stop working.
But this week Mr Zderad was able to see again, thanks to a groundbreaking procedure performed by surgeons at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
Mr Zderad was fitted with a Second Sight implant, which bypasses the damaged retina and sends light-wave signals to the optic nerve. Mr Zderad also had an electronic chip embedded in his right eye, which works in conjuction with a prosthetic device set in a pair of special glasses.
The patient was soon able to make out shapes, human forms and his own reflection. When he saw his wife sitting in front of him, the pair burst into tears.
Dr Raymond Iezzi Jr, the ophthalmologist who led the procedure, said: "This is great for this family. It’s also very unusual for a scientist like me to be able to actually apply outcomes of what we’ve worked on for years to help a patient. That’s very special.”
Though Mr Zderad, who has become the 15th person in America to receive the implant, will not be able to see finer details, such as people's faces, his quality of life has already dramatically improved. And he says he will always be able to recognise his wife.
“It’s easy,” he said, “she’s the most beautiful one in the room."
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