Progress with Artificial Retina Implants in Patients with Macular Degeneration

Macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa are two major causes of vision loss, and both damage the retina—the layer in the back of the eye that captures light and sends signals to the brain. Once those photoreceptors, called rods and cones, are lost, vision declines. But new research shows that artificial retina implants are giving some patients back a small but life-changing window of sight.