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Macular Degeneration

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Jun 2, 2009 6:32 am US/Eastern

Macular Degeneration

Reporting
Dr. Max Gomez
NEW YORK (CBS) ― Macular degeneration is a leading cause of vision loss, and even blindness, in older Americans. Now an experimental procedure is allowing someone who was legally blind from the condition to be able to drive again.

Nigel Cook, a formerly blind police officer in the U.K. is driving for the first time in years. He has macular degeneration, his central vision was slowly being lost and he was legally blind.

In normal vision, images are focused on the retina. The macula is the part that's responsible for detailed vision.

Someone with macular degeneration like Nigel, develops a blind spot in the center of their visual field.

To help, surgeons implanted a tiny telescope in one of Nigel's eyes. "It's just changed, you know, my day to day life, beyond recognition you know, its so exciting," he said.

"For those who are struggling to carry out activities of daily living, they'll suddenly find it easier to cook meals, or find their way around the house. Other people plain hobbies, good reports of people who can suddenly play golf rather better than before," said Dr. Andrew Luff of the Optegra Eye Hospital.

The procedure is called IMT for implantable miniature telescope. The telephoto effect allows images in the central visual field to not be focused directly on the damaged macula, but rather spread over other healthy areas of the central and peripheral retina, compensating for the blind spot.

Dr. Luff, who pioneered the treatment, said about a quarter of his patients have had a significant vision improvement.

Half are somewhat better.

The outpatient procedure is available privately in Britain but is not yet FDA-approved for use in this country.

For Nigel, who can now take a stroll with his dogs and read the paper, it was worth the risk.

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