Department of Ophthalmology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Prog Brain Res. 2011;192:3-15. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-444-53355-5.00001-4.
Once the topic of folklore and science fiction, the notion of restoring vision to the blind is now approaching a tractable reality. Technological advances have inspired numerous multidisciplinary groups worldwide to develop visual neuroprosthetic devices that could potentially provide useful vision and improve the quality of life of profoundly blind individuals. While a variety of approaches and designs are being pursued, they all share a common principle of creating visual percepts through the stimulation of visual neural elements using appropriate patterns of electrical stimulation. Human clinical trials are now well underway and initial results have been met with a balance of excitement and cautious optimism. As remaining technical and surgical challenges continue to be solved and clinical trials move forward, we now enter a phase of development that requires careful consideration of a new set of issues. Establishing appropriate patient selection criteria, methods of evaluating long-term performance and effectiveness, and strategies to rehabilitate implanted patients will all need to be considered in order to achieve optimal outcomes and establish these devices as viable therapeutic options.
曾经是民间传说和科幻小说的主题，为盲人恢复视力的概念现在正在接近一个可行的现实。技术进步激发了全球众多多学科团队开发视觉神经假体设备，这些设备有可能为深度失明者提供有用的视力并提高生活质量。虽然正在探索各种方法和设计，但它们都有一个共同的原则，即通过使用适当的电刺激模式刺激视觉神经元件来产生视觉感知。人体临床试验现在正在进行中，初步结果令人既兴奋又谨慎乐观。随着剩余的技术和手术挑战不断得到解决，临床试验不断推进，我们现在进入了一个需要仔细考虑一系列新问题的发展阶段。为了获得最佳效果并将这些设备确立为可行的治疗选择，需要考虑确定适当的患者选择标准、评估长期性能和效果的方法以及对植入患者进行康复的策略。
