Bionic eye allows blind man to see his wife for the first time in decade

A 68-year-old man was able to see his wife for the first time in ten years after becoming only the fifteenth person in the US to receive a “bionic eye” implant. [caption id=“attachment_2121599” align=“alignleft” width=“409”]  Screen grab[/caption] Afflicted by a degenerative condition known as retinitis pigmentosa, Allen Zderad was completely blind, unable to see anything but a bright light. This condition sadly has no cure, and Zderad was forced to quit his professional career as a Chemist, according to a statement from the Mayo Clinic. According to Medical News Today, Retinitis pigmentosa is a hereditary condition that causes the degeneration of specific cells in the retina called photoreceptors. The disease can cause some people to lose their vision completely. Before he was diagnosed with it Zderad’s grandson had the same disease in its early stages. Raymond Iezzi Jr., a Mayo Clinic researcher and ophthalmologist, installed 60 electrodes in his eye, which interact with a camera in Zderad’s glasses and a wearable computer pack to send information to the electrodes implanted in his retina, which then sends signals straight to the optic nerve, as explained to KARE. “This is great for this family. It’s also very unusual for a scientist like me to be able to actually apply outcomes of what we’ve worked on for years to help a patient. That’s very special,” Iezzi said, according to a statement from the Mayo Clinic. Zderad still can’t see the details of people’s faces, but he can make out forms and shapes. And after seeing his wife for the first time, he said it was easy enough for him to spot her because, “she’s the most beautiful one in the room.” Watch the heart warming video here: