Sight is one of the most important senses that the human being has. When it is lost, it is almost impossible to recover due to the large number of processes that work so that this function of the body is executed optimally. However, there is a new method that has succeeded bring light back to the eyes of 20 people who were completely or partially blind.
Advances in science generally focus on improving the quality of life for humans. Curing diseases and optimizing the functioning of each process in the body, in an economically accessible way, is the north that many pursue.
And although we know that there are medical treatments that are impossible for a sector of society, this one that wants to recover the sight of blind people points to what is accessible for the pocket of any social class.
According to what the portal publishes Cuban Debatethose responsible for creating this method to restore sight are scientists from the Linkoping Universityin Sweden, together with experts from the company Linko Care.
The researchers developed prototype artificial corneas with which they made 20 volunteers with diseased corneas recover their vision after receiving the implant. The results of this experimental study received the support of the scientific community when they were published in the Nature Biotechnology journal.
Researchers at the Swedish University of Linköping in collaboration with the company LinkoCare, created a prototype artificial cornea that has managed to restore vision to 20 people with diseased corneas, most of whom were blind before receiving the implant. pic.twitter.com/taBlsRaDuF
– Health La Sierpe (@DMSierpe) August 22, 2022
How were artificial corneas made to restore the sight of blind people?
When the cornea is damaged it is very difficult to repair it. It is only possible through organ donation from another human. Approximately 13 million people are blind due to this same problem and only one in 70 affected receives the benefit of the donation.
Until the work of these specialists who made these artificial corneas with an implant made of collagen proteins from pig skin. This material, notably in the animal kingdom, is very similar to the human cornea.
“The results show that it is possible to develop a biomaterial that meets all the criteria to be used as human implants, which can be mass-produced and stored for up to two years to reach more people with vision problems. We have made significant efforts to ensure that our development is widely available and affordable for everyone and not just the wealthiest,” said one of the project’s lead developers.
The eye disease targeted by this treatment is the so-called keratoconus. This is an injury in which the cornea becomes so thin that it can cause partial or total blindness.
Clinical trials were conducted in India and Iran. 14 of the 20 volunteers were completely blind. The first tests began two years ago and today all have recovered their sight, to the point that in three cases 20/20 (perfect) vision is recorded.