Durham hospital first in state to implant bionic eye

  • 2014-10-19
After being blind for three decades, Larry Hester got a second chance at sight when his new ‘bionic eye’ was switched on for the first time on October 1.

The 66-year-old retired tire dealer from Raleigh received his implanted eye several weeks ago at Durham’s Duke University Hospital. Dr. Paul Hahn did the surgery, which was the first of its kind in the state and only the seventh ‘bionic eye’ implant in the U.S.

Brochure printing services can use this type of groundbreaking surgery to promote a hospital and thereby increase its funding.

The Argus II, costs $145,000 and consists of a tiny video camera attached to eyeglass and a small belt-mounted computer that beams information to a chip implanted within Hester’s left eyeball. The information is converted into electrical impulses that stimulate the optic nerve, resulting in a rudimentary vision that his brain has to learn to interpret.

Hester contacted the company early last year to volunteer one of the first test subjects, soon after learning the device had been approved for use in the U.S. In exchange for the implant, he agreed to work with the company for five years.

He understood that he would only gain a primitive form of vision. However, the technology is only in its infancy and needs the data that pioneers like Hester gather to make improvement to the equipment and software.