{"id":32834,"date":"2025-11-05T10:33:18","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T10:33:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metaverseplanet.net\/blog\/?p=32834"},"modified":"2026-01-05T12:58:42","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T12:58:42","slug":"glasses-and-chip-merge-to-restore-lost-vision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metaverseplanet.net\/blog\/glasses-and-chip-merge-to-restore-lost-vision\/","title":{"rendered":"Glasses and Chip Merge to Restore Lost Vision"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A report published in The New England Journal of Medicine<\/strong> focused on the PRIMA implant<\/strong>, which restored vision in patients with dry Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD)<\/strong>. The system uses AI support<\/strong> to capture images and project them as near-infrared light<\/strong> onto the implant; however, the resulting images are currently only in black and white<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A new beacon of hope has emerged for patients suffering from Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD)<\/strong>, an untreatable cause of vision loss affecting approximately 200 million people over the age of 50<\/strong> worldwide. A new study concerning the over 5 million individuals<\/strong> battling Geographic Atrophy (GA)<\/strong>, the advanced form of the disease that leads to vision loss, promises a small retinal implant<\/strong> with the potential to restore sight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the report published in The New England Journal of Medicine<\/strong>, this system, called Photovoltaic Retinal Implant Micro-array (PRIMA)<\/strong>, provided clinically significant improvements<\/strong> in patients suffering from GA<\/strong>. In individuals with dry AMD<\/strong>, the macula<\/strong> (responsible for detailed color vision in the retina) begins to thin. Scientists aimed to restore sight by implanting a light-sensitive device<\/strong>, based on the premise that these patients retain some of their photoreceptors<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The PRIMA system<\/strong> operates with a 2 mm subretinal photovoltaic chip<\/strong> surgically placed in the eye. This chip is complemented by augmented reality glasses<\/strong> connected to a controller worn on the belt. The glasses capture the images the person is looking at and project them onto the implant as near-infrared light<\/strong>. The chip receives these signals, and Artificial Intelligence (AI)<\/a><\/em><\/strong> uses this data to convert them into images readable by the brain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Promising, but Areas Need Improvement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The results of the study are quite encouraging. The PRIMA implant<\/strong> was fitted to 38 participants<\/strong>, and approximately 80%<\/strong> of those evaluated at the 12-month mark showed a clinically significant improvement<\/strong>. However, researchers note that the “intensive vision training<\/strong>” the patients received might also have contributed to these improvement rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In its current state, the images seen by users whose vision was restored by the implant are in black and white<\/strong>. This highlights a crucial aspect of the technology that requires further development. The co-leads of the study aim to increase visual acuity<\/strong> by adding to or improving the software behind the technology in the future. The goal is to help patients “resolve grayscale<\/strong> and improve their face recognition skills<\/strong>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Experts do not believe that full 20\/20 visual acuity<\/strong> can be restored with the implant alone. However, they are actively working on different “tricks” and methods that could enable vision above the threshold of legal blindness<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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