Retinal Implant

A retinal implant is a biomedical implant technology currently being developed by a number of private companies and research institutions worldwide. The implant is meant to partially restore useful vision to people who have lost their vision due to degenerative eye conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa or macular degeneration. There are three types of retinal implants currently in clinical trials: epiretinal Implants (on the retina), subretinal Implants (behind the retina), and suprachoroidal implants (above the vascular choroid). Retinal implants provide the user with low resolution images by electrically stimulating surviving retinal cells. Such images may be sufficient for restoring specific visual abilities, such as light perception and object recognition.

The Argus II retinal implant has received market approval in the USA in Feb 2013 and in Europe in Feb 2011, becoming the first approved implant. The device may help adults with RP who have lost the ability to perceive shapes and movement to be more mobile and to perform day-to-day activities.