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> December 10, 1999:
Hour One: Vision Research and Technologies
It may seem like something out of Star Trek - using new technologies to restore sight to people with vision impairments. It's not science fiction, however. Around the world, scientists are developing ways to repair a host of problems that can prevent people from seeing. | In the past few years, laser-assisted techniques that sculpt the surface of the cornea, such as LASIK and PRK, have become extremely popular. Imagine grinding and polishing a telescope lens to improve its focus, and you can understand basically how the technique works. The laser removes a layer of cells to reshape the cornea, allowing light to focus better on the surface of the retina. Advocates say that the technique can give about 95% of recipients at least 20/40 vision - but the $2000 per eye pricetag may keep some people away. |  | But some researchers are working on more radical techniques to help people with more serious vision problems. Transplanted corneas are nothing new - and researchers have developed artificial corneas similar to permanently implanted contact lenses. Now a team of researchers in Ottawa, Canada, has developed an artificial cornea made from layers of living human cells. Their artificial cornea, they say, behaves almost like a real human cornea. In addition to possibly helping people with vision problems, the scientists believe that their invention could also help safety-test products without using animals. The team reports their findings in this week's edition of the journal Science.
Other researchers are developing a chip that could work as an artificial retina, translating light from the outside world into electrical signals that the brain can understand. The implant could help to restore some vision to patients with retinal diseases like macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa. However, blindness can be caused by many things - and an implant like this would not help people whose blindness is caused by brain damage or damage to the optic nerve.
On this hour of Science Friday, we'll talk about some of the new treatments and new technologies helping restore sight to people with vision impairments--from vision chips to the controversial use of human fetal tissue for regenerating eye cells. Tune in.
Guests:
May Griffith
Research Scientist
University of Ottawa Eye Institute
Professor, Cellular and Molecular Medicine
University of Ottawa
Ottawa, Ontario
Gislin Dagnelei
Researcher
Wilmer Eye Institute
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, Maryland
Dr. Thomas Friberg
Professor, Opthalmology
Chairman, Department of Opthalmology
Director of Retina and Vitreous Service
The Eye and Ear Institute of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Dr. Terry Ernest
Professor, Chairman, Opthalmology and Visual Science
University of Chicago Medical Center
University of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois
Books/Articles Discussed:
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- "Functional Human Corneal Equivalents Constructed from Cell Lines," by M. Griffith, R. Osborne, R. Munger, X. Xiong, C. Doillon, N. Laylock, M. Hakim, Y. Song, and M. Watsky. Science, 10 December 1999.
| | Related Links:
OnHealth: The New Choices in Eye Surgery
American Academy of Ophthalmology
Exploratorium:Cow's Eye Dissection
The Retinal Implant Project
Simulations of retinal implant images
Technology Review: May/June 99: Seeing is Believing
Laser Eye Surgery - The Refractive Surgery Patient Resource Center
NEURAL PROSTHESIS PROGRAM, NINDS
Eye Resources on the Internet - long list
- This segment produced by:
Annette Heist
Web producer:
Charles Bergquist
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