Implantable Miniature Telescope for Age-Related Macular Degeneration

The Implantable Telescope Technology platform is based on wide-angle micro-optics that, in combination with the optics of the cornea, create a telephoto system that magnifies objects in view… The telescope implant is surgically placed in the capsular bag after removal of the eye’s lens. Implantation inside the eye allows the patient to see using natural eye movements in both stationary and dynamic environments.

The magnification allows central images to be projected onto healthy perimacular areas of the retina instead of the macula alone, where breakdown of photoreceptors and loss of vision has occurred. This helps reduce the ‘blind spot’ and allows the patient to distinguish and discern images that may have been unrecognizable or difficult to see.

VisionCare Opthalmic Technologies

METHODS: In this prospective, multicenter phase I trial, 14 patients aged 60 or older with bilateral geographic atrophy or disciform scar AMD, cataract, and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) between 20/80 and 20/400 had an IMT implanted in one eye. Distance and near BCVA, endothelial cell density, and quality of life, measured as activities of daily life (ADL), were evaluated preoperatively and postoperatively.

RESULTS: At 12 months, 10 (77%) of 13 patients gained 2 more lines of either distance or near BCVA, and eight (62%) of 13 patients gained 3 or more lines in either distance or near BCVA. Mean endothelial cell density decreased by 13%. All adverse events resolved without sequelae. ADL scores improved in the majority of patients.

CONCLUSION: The results of this phase I trial support further evaluation of the IMT in a larger study population with late-stage AMD. A phase II/III trial is in progress.

A Prospective Multicenter Clinical Trial to Evaluate the Safety and Effectiveness of the Implantable Miniature Telescope [American Journal of Ophthalmology; 2004;137:993–1001]