Abstract

Photoreceptors degrade rapidly in hereditary retinal disorders, often resulting in blindness in the absence of treatment. Photoreceptor functions can be replaced by newly created subretinal implants. Retina implant extraocular surgical procedure is heavily reliant on cochlear-implant expertise. However, a whole new surgical approach for handling the photosensor array safely has to be established. Through a sub periosteal tunnel above the zygoma using a specially built trocar. In all patients, the implant housing was secured in a bone bed within a tight subperiosteal pocket. The primary outcomes were patient safety and effectiveness in the short term. In the first phase of the multicenter experiment, nine patients received the subretinal visual implant in one eye. Microphotodiode array pull-through and steady placement were possible in all circumstances without impacting device function.