Eye injection restored sight for first patient in pilot treatment

A pilot treatment at Moorfields Hospital using repeated injections of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPCM) restored vision in seven of eight patients, and the first treated patient reports significant improvement.

Moorfields Hospital in London has reported early success using repeated injections to treat hypotony, a condition in which pressure inside the eyeball becomes abnormally low. The team injected a transparent, water-based gel called hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPCM) into the main part of the eye to restore its shape and pressure. One of the first treated patients, 47-year-old Nicki Guy, says she regained much of her sight after years of severe vision loss and now reads most lines on an eye chart. The clinic has begun publishing early results from a pilot study showing responses in most treated patients. Key findings: - The pilot study reported that seven of eight patients responded to the HPCM injection treatment. - The treatment involves injections every three to four weeks for around 10 months in total. - Moorfields has treated 35 patients so far and has published outcomes from the first eight in the British Journal of Ophthalmology. - HPCM is described as a low-cost, transparent, water-based gel already used in some types of eye surgery. - The first patient treated, Nicki Guy, reported a substantial improvement in day-to-day vision after previous treatments, including silicone oil, had been ineffective. Summary: The pilot shows repeated HPCM injections can restore eye shape and improve vision for many people with hypotony. The team has treated 35 patients and published early outcomes, but researchers say it is early days and wider effectiveness and long-term outcomes remain undetermined at this time.