A Biology Teacher who totally lost the ability to sense light 16 years ago temporarily regained enough vision to discern letters and shapes thanks to a brain implant that interfaced with special glasses, reports an October 19 paper in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Gomez, now 58, lives in Spain and taught high school biology until she became completely blind in a matter of days after a condition known as toxic optic neuropathy severed the connection from her eyes to the brain, according to a statement from the University of Utah. Gomez was the first person to receive the Utah Electrode Array (UEA), which was developed by Normann with the aim of restoring sight for millions of people experiencing blindness.