Technology achieves past-perfect vision

Williams

While the work is still in a research stage, eye-care giant Bausch & Lomb has licensed the technology and is working with University researchers to commercialize it.

"For years David has been way out in front exploring how we could enhance people's vision beyond what is normally thought of as perfect vision," said Scott MacRae, one of the world's leading cornea specialists and a widely recognized pioneer in refractive surgery. MacRae moved to the Medical Center last month to join Williams at the newly established Alliance for Vision Excellence, a new collaboration between the University and Bausch & Lomb that is dedicated to improving technology to correct vision-impairing anomalies of the eye.

"In the old days, we were just trying to correct people's vision problems and treat disease," added MacRae. "This new research takes what we consider normal vision and enhances it. This is truly revolutionary."

Williams uses technology known as adaptive optics, which was originally developed by astronomers to sharpen images from telescopes by correcting for aberrations in the atmosphere. He has led a decade-long effort to apply the technology to improve ordinary human vision.

The system his laboratory invented detects visual distortions so subtle that physicians didn't even know they existed. Today a visit to the eye doctor focuses mainly on two types of aberration: astigmatism and defocus. Williams's system, however, can measure up to 65 different aberrations. In the laboratory, his team has shown that correcting these imperfections can result in greatly improved vision.

"When you look through an adaptive optics device, the world looks crisper," Williams said. "Everything suddenly looks sharper and clearer, no matter how good your eyes are normally. When you're using the adaptive optics system, you just say 'wow.' "

Maintained by University Public Relations
Please send your comments and suggestions to:
Public Relations.