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Implantable Eye Telescope Finally FDA Approved
kkleiner writes "A telescopic implant that fits directly into the eye to treat certain kinds of blindness has finally received FDA approval for use in the US after more than five years of waiting. The Implantable Miniature Telescope (IMT) is used to treat age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a condition that affects millions around the world. For many, the center part of their vision becomes blurred or completely dark. The IMT is surgically implanted into the cornea and acts to expand an incoming image onto the peripheral parts of the retina that are undamaged by AMD. The commercial version of the IMT is called CentraSight and is in development by VisionCare Inc. There are likely hundreds of thousands of potential patients in the US alone who may be able to have their vision partially restored now that CentraSight has garnered FDA approval."
Does each set come with cool "DOO Doo doo doo doooooo..." sound effects and a Lindsay Wagner blow up doll?
Trolling is a art,
I know I'm not the only one expecting a device that would allow me to enjoy some backyard astronomy anytime, anywhere. I am very disappointed.
I certainly didn't have the foresight to see this coming!
If implanted in a person with 20/20 vision, what would be the effects?
"Going to war without the French is like going deer hunting without your accordion." ~General Norman Schwarzkopf
That person would see much the same as the patients with AMD. That is to say a loss of vision in the central region of your visual range (in the case of a non-AMD person: because the telescope is in the way, if nothing else), and all vision that -would- have fallen into the central region instead being expanded out toward the outer regions, essentially giving you a ring or donut shaped view of the world.
The article also mentions that if the person with AMD still has a good eye as well, that eye would be left untreated to provide for peripheral vision. That implies that with the device, peripheral vision would also be, to an extent, lost.
Replacement:
Arms - Check
Legs - Check
Heart - Check
Hands - getting there
Eyes - getting there
My opinions are my own, and do not necessarily represent those of my employer.
Shouldn't the /. Bill Gates Borg icon appear on this story?
Laser beams? Silly boy! This is an eye implant! No room for the sharks.
"This post contains words, known to the State of California to cause thought. Wash brain thoroughly after reading."
Damn, that's horrible. The moral of the story is: Use Intel.
WTF am I doing replying to an AC at 5 A.M on a Friday night?
This implant is a lot better than going blind.
But really what we want is stemcell therapies that restore the macula to a fully working retina without further complication. Especially if the stemcells come from the patient themself, without requiring a separate donor, or tissue banks.
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make install -not war
Surely there's plenty of countries who will fast track med-tech that the FDA always seems to drag their feet on. What's to stop a company from setting up shop on the Mexican border for the latest in treatment?
Pretty much this.
Can anyone say were getting close to what Geordi La Forge had in the last Star Trek: Next Generation movie??
"were getting close to what Geordi La Forge had in the last Star Trek: Next Generation movie".
But for the joke to work, you have to think it in Leslie Nielson's voice. It's sort of a "It's the little room at the front of the plane, but that's not important right now" thing.
peripheral vision
Sometimes the jokes write themselves. :D
Optical zoom only please. None of that digial zoom bullshit.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
According to this site, the implant will cost 100 minerals as well as 100 gas.
Hmmm, sure he's the one that should get out? I suspect you're thinking of the wrong SF series.
Not a typewriter
Well, no, not really. This isn't even remotely the same technology path.
This involves using fairly conventional optics to make the best use of a person's existing visual capabilities, resulting in better (but still not "perfect") vision for those with certain types of eye damage. The innovation is overcoming the challenges to implant said optics in the eye.
Geordi's visor would use its own sensors to pull in a much wider spectrum of information than just visible light, bypassing his eyes (i.e. not trying to make use of his existing visual capabilities) to give him superhuman vision. The device would not be implanted in the eye and so would not use the innovations from the telescope.
The technological overlap is just about zero.
I want my eyePhone, dammit.