Recently, American scientists have made a groundbreaking advancement with a new eye technology called Electromechanical Restructuring Techniques (electromechanical reshaping). This technique eliminates the need for traditional LASIK laser surgery, providing a safer alternative for corneal repair. It has successfully corrected myopia through experiments on rabbit eyes, showcasing its potential by temporarily softening and reshaping the cornea with gentle electric currents.
This research and development effort was collaboratively completed by the research teams from Occidental College and the University of California, Irvine, and was publicly presented at a meeting of the American Chemical Society. Unlike traditional LASIK surgery, which requires laser cutting, electromechanical reshaping takes only about one minute and reshapes the cornea through adjustments in current and pH levels. This method not only reduces invasive intervention on the cornea but also lowers the surgical risks.
Brian Wong, a professor and surgeon at the University of California, Irvine, highlights that this discovery springs from his exploration of the plasticity of living tissues, emphasizing the potential role of chemical modifications in ophthalmic surgery.
In this technology, specially crafted platinum contact lenses are placed as electrodes above the cornea. When a weak electric current is applied, it alters the pH level of the cornea, temporarily softening it and reshaping it to match the lens's design. Once the current stops, the cornea's pH level returns to normal, stabilizing and retaining its new shape.
The lead researcher, Michael Hill, a chemistry professor at Occidental College, noted that while there is still a significant gap between the research phase and clinical application, the potential applications of this technology could be quite extensive if clinical trials go well. It may lead to a substantial reduction in treatment costs and even offer reversible options.
Compared to traditional LASIK surgery, mechanotransduction therapy offers several advantages, including no need to cut or remove corneal tissue and no damage to corneal cells, significantly reducing the risks of side effects such as dry eye syndrome and glare. In this study, the research team tested 12 eye samples from rabbits, successfully correcting myopia in 10 of them without any structural damage or cell death observed in the process.
In the future, the team plans to test this technology on live rabbits, exploring its potential in correcting hyperopia and astigmatism, as well as its application in addressing corneal opacity issues caused by chemical agents. However, researchers also acknowledge that further animal experiments are necessary before proceeding to human clinical trials, and they need to determine which cases of corneal correction are suitable for electromechanical reshaping.
Although this technology is still in the early stages of development, it has garnered significant attention from the ophthalmic community. If clinical trials go smoothly, it will provide hundreds of vision correction patients with safer, more effective, and non-invasive treatment options.
