Hubble telescope inspires new intraocular lens for AMD sufferers

Surgeons from The London Eye Hospital are claiming a major breakthrough in IOL surgery using a twin lens design which can help sufferers of AMD achieve better vision.

The team recognised similar problems between previous telescopic implants and the Hubble telescope which inspired their design. Bobby Qureshi, chief medical officer and founder of the LEH and Professor Pablo Artal from Murcia University built on a hyper-aspheric lens to design a mini-telescope which is inserted much the same as any IOL used for cataract surgery. The iolAMD lens is made up of two lenses 2mm apart which magnify the images and then direct it away from the non-functioning areas of the retina. Qureshi says the development is a major improvement which could benefit a wide range of patients for whom there is currently no treatment. 'This is not just the next step but a giant leap in optical technology,' he says.