When this device will be lauched so that the blind people can see the world. i have kid who is suffring from ROP 5. like he is blind and i assume he can see a little bit in Right Hand Side.

vijay , Bangalore,

I am interested in the development and progress of this research. My sister had retina detached in one of her eyes in a car accident. She is legally blind and as she ages that very little vision is fast disappearing. If this transplant is available to her we will look into it.

Sunita Kandola , Canberra , Australia

It's nice to know about this revolution !!
It's a precious gift for blind persons!!
let's see ... availability and function of bionic eye in future..
I want one for a blind person of 42 yrs of age.
hope for the best !!

Sapna Gupta, Lucknow, India

I suffer from very high miopy, wich at my 33 years old (4 years ago) resulted in progressive loss of rethin cells and consequent very low vision nowadays with no correction via glasses or operation.
I'm very excited with these news, anyways, I guess that I will just (eventually) recover my previous vision with very advanced and microscopic cameras that may take 15-20 years to develop.
I pray everyday that those "more advanced" cameras can be oproduced in a short period of time (10 year or so). I'm 37, I would be the most happy person in the world with my "old vision" at 47.
God Bless you all.

Luis, *, Portugal

i am 22 year old guy suffering from retinitis pigmentosa
first when i read heading of this news i was very excited and unable to control my heartbeats
but when i read complete article i'm sad, 5'7 years is a very long period

ankit j, delhi, india

Nice to see this sort of research with likely meaningful outcomes in 30 to 50 years. In the meantime, keeping this in proper perspective suggests a $20 white cane will still "see" better than several generations of this technology plus has no risk of infection, chronic pain, or even physiological/immunological rejection. Plus, with proper training, I suspect my white cane leaves me with much less "stumbling" than a 1,000 pixel picture. I'm more optimistic about living cell implants than a silicon wafer in my eyeball. Until then, I'll just keep on my productive path as a gainfully employed happy professional with RP gracefully navigating via my trusty white cane and no dark glasses. Thanks to all the Orientation and Mobility trainers across the U.S. A cane isn't perfect but it's darn good when properly used. Thanks too medical researchers and those willing to try out the latest medical interventions.

Michael Hudson, East Lansing, Michigan,USA

We have a 11 year old son who has been diagnosed with RP as part of having the genetic condition 'Bardet Beidle Syndrone'. His only symptons currently is that he struggles in the dark but his long term diagnosis is that he could loose his vision in his thirties.
We are obviously very excited by this news but accept that this may take longer than 5 - 7 years although who knows what size of device could be available in say 15-20 years when he will see a notable difference in his vision.
Could we be included on any e-mail distribution list so that we can keep informed as to development progress.

Nick, Rastrick, Brighouse, England

Wonderful news, but let's be careful when talking about 'restoring sight'. The expected result was to only see black and white, the real one was better. Amazing! But being able to differentiate between a plate and a cup doesn't mean you see them as you used to, you just see a difference between two shapes made of light.
Recognizing faces, therefore, would mean the same, I think - not being able to see what you used to, but seeing an oval of light with blotches of dark. Maybe it will be better than that, but I hope people don't get their hopes up too much. It's one thing to be told: you will only be able to tell light from dark and find out it's better than that. It's quite another to have the media talk of 'bionic eyes' and leave the fantasy up to the blind.

As for when we see these available - what research ever made good on those kind of promises? I think this is an amazing development, but I also think it will still take a lot longer than 5 to 7 years.

Einder, Rotterdam, Netherlands

How to contact the Eye Institute:

Doheny Eye Institute
1450 San Pablo Street
DEI-3050
Los Angeles, CA 90033
tel: (323) 442-7101
fax: (323) 442-7114

Angie, Atlanta, Georgia, US

i am also a RP sufferer and i am partially blind. is there any hope that this discovery would lead to me getting a treatment.

Chandni Sony, London, UK

My niece is 15years, one eye blind, she had an accident . She would like to be a volunteered. She is in africa. Full story will follow.

Jackline Katowa, Dublin, Ireland