Sight: New technology to restore vision

Estimates show that over 43 million people were blind in 2021. Over 293 million people suffer from partial blindness.

So an exciting new discovery that could help restore vision is welcome.

There are many reasons for blindness. Cataracts, diabetic retinopathy glaucoma.

Another reason for blindness is a development of opaqueness in the cornea.

Caused by eye infections, injuries, vitamin deficiencies, among other reasons, the cornea becomes damaged or scarred, which prevents light from passing through the eye.

This can lead to blurred vision, eye redness, and excessive tearing.

A steady supply of stem cells within the eye maintains the cornea. The cells auto divide to supply the cells required to restore and repair the cornea.

This process is known as asymetric division, in which the cells can divide with being replenished.

Occasionally, because of genetic or autoimmune conditions, this supply can stop, resulting in the cornea turning opaque.

Scientists in Osaka University in Japan performed a corneal transplant including stem cells into patients with damaged cornea.

To do so they first created a thin sheet of cornea, shaped like cobblestones which were then transplanted onto the patient.

Two years after the surgery, the patients had restored vision with little to no side effects.

It is still not clear if vision was restored because they scraped the old cornea away or because of the new cornea implanted. Regardless, restoration of vision was a magical boon to the patient.

I know a large part of my writing revolves around natural and preventive cures. But ever so often, you run into miraculous cures from modern medicine.

Restoration of cornea for a blind person clearly being one.

The surgery is still experimental, but as the number of patients who experience success grow, so will the technology and its widespread use.

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