Stem cell treatments from a doctor in India helped an American man recover his vision after losing it seven years ago, Daily News & Analysis reports.
"I could see the glitter and glimpse of [the] Taj Mahal, [I] could see its white aura.... it is very exciting," 62-year-old Carl Stevens told DNA.
Stevens lost his eyesight in 2004 following a bout with pneumonia that developed into an acute respiratory illness. Stevens had to be kept on a ventilator but lost his sight due to damaged optic nerves, Himanshu Bansal, the doctor who treated Stevens with the stem cells, told DNA.
Several tests confirmed that Stevens had ischemic optic atrophy — vision loss due to insufficient blood supply to the optic nerves. The condition is considered irreversible.
Bansal, a consultant in regenerative medicine at the Institute of Spinal Injury and Stem Cell Research, Rudrapur and member of Revita, an association of stem cell specialists, used stem cells generated from Stevens’ own body to repair the damaged optic nerves.
"He had no perception of light. There was no reaction on his pupil on throwing light," Bansal told DNA. But after just three shots, Stevens’ pupils began reacting to light.
