Jennifer Mathews: This looks like a simple task, and it is for many, but Katherine Bretting is one of the half million people with macular degeneration.
Dr. M. Bowes Hamill says, "The condition destroys central vision." This "A" would be invisible to someone with macular degeneration.
Dr. M. Bowes Hamill: It's as if you walked around with a plate in front of your face and everywhere you looked, there was that plate. You can't see around it, and it's extremely debilitating.
Jennifer Mathews: What allows Katherine to see these charts is this tiny device, an implantable telescope.
Katherine Bretting: They told me I could be able to do so many different things and I was tickled to death.
Jennifer Mathews: Once implanted, the telescope magnifies everything up to three times.
Dr. M. Bowes Hamill: All of a sudden now, enough of the A falls outside the abnormal area so that the patient can read it as an A.
Jennifer Mathews: The success even surprised Dr. Hamill.
Dr. M. Bowes Hamill: There's a big step between what ought to work and what does work and Ms. Bretting certainly has given us great encouragement to keep going because she has experienced a significant improvement in her quality of life.
Jennifer Mathews: She's even able to go back to her hobbies.
Jennifer Mathews: Now with her vision back, she can get this doll ready for the next generation.
This is Jennifer Mathews reporting.
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