Definition
Retinal degenerative diseases lead to blindness due to loss of the “image capturing” photoreceptors, while the “image processing” inner retinal neurons and the “output” ganglion cells are relatively well preserved. Electronic retinal prostheses seek to reintroduce visual information and thereby restore sight by patterned electrical stimulation of the surviving neurons.
Detailed Description
Photoreceptors convert light into neural signals, which are processed by the inner retinal neurons, leading to generation of action potentials in the retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). These signals travel through the optic nerve to the brain and serve as the basis for visual perception. In retinal degenerative diseases, such as Retinitis Pigmentosa or Age-Related Macular Degeneration, photoreceptors gradually disappear, leading to loss of sight, even though the inner retinal cells remain largely intact. Electrical stimulation of the remaining retinal neurons can reintroduce visual...
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References
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Palanker, D. (2018). Visual Prosthesis, Optoelectronic Devices. In: Jaeger, D., Jung, R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Computational Neuroscience. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7320-6_665-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7320-6_665-2
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Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
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Chapter history
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Latest
Visual Prosthesis, Optoelectronic Devices- Published:
- 30 August 2018
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7320-6_665-2
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Original
Retinal Prostheses for Restoration of Sight- Published:
- 22 March 2014
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7320-6_665-1