Virginia Bane, an 89-year-old woman living in Pollock Pines, California, has been handed a new lease on life following a medical breakthrough that has restored her sight, according to News10.
The article noted that UC Davis Medical Center surgeons were successful in inserting a telescope implant into Bane’s eye in a bid to restore vision lost to age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Prof. Mark Mannis, chair of ophthalmology and vision sciences at UC Davis Health System’s Eye Center, said in the article that AMD harms the retina and leads to the creation of a so-called blind spot in the patients’ central field of vision. The telescope, meanwhile, restores vision loss courtesy of transmitting images onto a healthy part of the retina. This process enables the patients to once more recognize people’s faces and to see objects that are right in front of them.
According to the article, surgeons inserted the telescope into Bane’s eye this past May. Following the procedure, she was assigned to take part in recovery therapies that have facilitated healing. She gradually got back her eyesight over the course of the recovery phase, according to the article.
Commenting on the operation and the recovery process, Bane said in the article that she feels “wonderful” now that she is able to see “things” that she had “forgot about.” She said that she now knows how her “own family” looks. She added that the inserted telescope has allowed her to see shapes and colors for the first time in years.
Richard Van Buskir, an optometrist with the Society for the Blind in Sacramento, said in the article that Bane’s vision will progressively improve as her brain relearns “how to see.” He said that she employes her left eye, which has the implant, to do things like “reading a book” and determining other details. He added that Bane’s untreated right eye gives her the needed peripheral vision that helps with functions such as mobility, balance and walking.
According to the article, the Food and Drug Administration okayed the telescope device back in 2010. The article noted that it is presently the sole medial option on the market to help restore vision loss caused by AMD in its advanced stage.
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Reference: http://www.news10.net/news/article/209080/2/UC-Davis-surgeons-successfully-reverse-blindness