Improving vision with retinal implants and brain imaging
Restoring Sight to the Blind: Neural Imaging with Retinal Prostheses
This project uses brain imaging in people with retinal implants to learn why some regain better vision than others and to help choose and train patients who could benefit.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Newark, UNITED STATES) |
| Project ID | NIH-11175421 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you take part, researchers will study people who have retinal prostheses—devices that stimulate remaining retinal cells using a camera-mounted system—and measure how you see and perform simple tasks. They will use neural imaging to see how the visual parts of your brain reorganized during blindness and how they respond when the implant sends signals. The team will also look at how restored vision interacts with hearing and touch, because other senses can take over visual brain regions during blindness. The results may help doctors select better candidates for implants and design training to improve real-world vision.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are people with vision loss from retinal degeneration who already have or are eligible for a retinal prosthesis and can undergo brain imaging.
Not a fit: People whose blindness is not caused by retinal disease or who are not candidates for retinal implants are unlikely to benefit directly from this research.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: This work could help identify who is most likely to gain useful vision from a retinal implant and guide rehabilitation to improve outcomes.
How similar studies have performed: Retinal prostheses have restored basic visual functions in past patients, but using brain imaging to explain and reduce variability in outcomes is a newer approach.
Where this research is happening
Newark, UNITED STATES
- Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences — Newark, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Stiles, Noelle — Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Stiles, Noelle
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.