At Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, surgeons have implanted 34 tiny wireless stimulators in the brain of a third person with blindness, taking another step toward testing artificial vision. Together, the devices carry 544 electrodes, which are designed to send signals to the brain’s visual cortex, the area that processes sight.
The system, called the Intracortical Visual Prosthesis, or ICVP, aims to help people who are totally blind perceive patterns of artificial vision. It does not repair the eyes. Instead, it bypasses the retina and optic nerves and connects directly to the brain. Researchers hope that the signals may eventually help users with navigation and simple tasks guided by sight.
The third implant was placed as part of a study of the technology. The project is led by Philip R. Troyk, executive director of the Pritzker Institute of Biomedical Science and Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology and a professor of biomedical engineering. The work builds on nearly three decades of research into artificial sight for people who lost vision through disease or injury.
The ICVP has a feature that sets it apart: it uses a group of miniaturized wireless stimulators that can be implanted permanently. That gives researchers time to study how the system works and lets participants learn whether the signals can be useful in daily life. Before moving to this clinical stage, the Illinois Tech team worked with neurosurgeons at Rush to develop and refine the surgical methods.
The clinical study will test whether the implant improves participants’ ability to navigate and complete basic visually guided tasks. It is not yet known how much artificial vision the system can provide. Sepehr Sani, a Rush professor of neurological surgery who performed the surgery, called the third implantation an important step toward giving people with profound vision loss another option.
The work brings together Illinois Tech, Rush, the Chicago Lighthouse, the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins, the University of Texas at Dallas, Microprobes for Life Science, Sigenics Inc. and the University of Chicago. Janet P. Szlyk, president and CEO of the Chicago Lighthouse, said even perceiving a small amount of light could make a meaningful difference for people who are completely blind.
Researchers are seeking volunteers who lost their sight as adults and had normal or near-normal vision for at least their first 10 years. After surgery and about one month of recovery, participants may be followed for one to three years, depending on when they receive the implant. The study will help show whether a direct brain connection can turn electrical signals into useful visual cues. For now, the third surgery marks progress in testing the approach, not a proven restoration of sight.