London 12 August : A group of international scientists, which includes those from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in India They have created an implant made of collagen protein extracted from the skin of pigs.It is similar to the cornea of a human and has restored vision for those with blindness as well as those who have visual impairments.The implant is bioengineered and serves as an alternative to transplantation of corneas donated by humans which are in short supply in regions where the demand for them is the greatest.
“The results demonstrate that it’s possible to create biomaterial that fulfills all the requirements for use as human implants.
It can be produced in mass quantities and stored for up to two years in storage and thus reach more people with issues with vision.This helps us solve the issue of the lack of cornea tissue that can be donated and provides access to treatments that treat eye disease,” said Neil Lagali Professor in the Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences at Linkoping University (LiU) in Sweden.
In a pilot study that was published in Nature Biotechnology, the implant brought back vision to 20 people in India as well as Iran with corneas that were damaged.Of the participants, 14 comprising 3 from India had been blind before receiving the implant.
In addition to being completely safe, the transplant also restored to normal cornea’s thickness as well as curvature.The vision of the participants was also improved to the extent it would after the cornea transplant with donated tissue.
After two years the study concluded that none of participants was blind anymore.Three of the Indian participants who were blind prior to the study , had complete (20/20) vision following the procedure according to the study’s researchers.
The team also devised an innovative, minimally invasive treatment for the condition known as keratoconus in where the cornea gets so thin that it could cause blindness.
The current procedure for keratoconus patients is to have their cornea, which is at an advanced stage, is removed surgically and replaced with a donated cornea.
It is stitched in place with surgical sutures.
Contrary to popular belief the new method of surgery does not require stitches.
The cut in the cornea can be done with precision using the latest laser technology, and at times by hand with basic surgical instruments.The method was initially test-driven on pigs, and it proved to be more simple and more secure than a traditional cornea transplant.
The surgical procedure and implants were utilized by surgeons in Iran and India on 20 patients who were blind or at risk of losing their sight due advanced keratoconus.They they received the biomaterial implant.
The operation was free of complications and the tissue healed quickly and a treatment of eight weeks with drops to treat the immune system was enough to avoid rejection of the implant.When it comes to cornea transplants that are conventional it is necessary to take medicine for a period of time.
Patients were monitored for two years and there were no complications during this period.
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