Blinded British soldier to be the first there to be fitted with device allowing him to see with his tongue

From The Guardian in the UK:

A British serviceman blinded in combat will become the first UK patient to be fitted with revolutionary technology that enables users to see with their tongue.

The BrainPort vision system (pictured), developed in the US, transforms light images into champagne-like tingling sensations to help sufferers visualise their surroundings.
The device is part of an array of medical equipment and techniques unveiled by the Ministry of Defence today to help soldiers returning from Afghanistan overcome their injuries.

Thanks to surgical advances, victims are surviving battlefield wounds that would previously have been fatal. Consequently, there are many more servicemen in the MoD's category of "exceptionally complex casualties"; most are hurt in roadside blasts from IEDs (improvised explosive devices) that cause severe head and chest injuries, loss of limbs and extensive burns.

Wing Commander Rob Scott, defence consultant adviser in ophthalmology, said the Brainport vision technology, made by US company Wicab, will be trialled by the UK serviceman soon.

"It's a device that effectively connects a camera that is put on a pair of glasses so it can scan the surroundings," he said at the Ministry of Defence briefing in London. "It connects into an array of electrodes that you place on your tongue to act as a sensory substitution device to give a representation of the scene around you.

"So if a totally blind person were to come into a room and then scan around it, that person would be able to see the furniture, the people… who was there or if they had moved.

"It's put on a thing like a lollipop and placed on the tongue to give a sensation like champagne. With training, they would be able to find their way around the room using this device. The needs and aspirations of blind people are very complex. Anything to help with independence and getting jobs is paramount in their minds."

Defence chiefs say there are "less than five" UK military casualties who have been completely blinded, although more have partially lost their sight.

Lieutenant-General Louis Lillywhite, the Surgeon-General, revealed that the army is also developing hearing protection for soldiers to wear in battle to reduce damage to their hearing. "[The device] will have to be worn up to 16 hours a day. It has to continue to provide spatial awareness so that soldiers can tell where rounds are coming from and be compatible with their radio," he said. "We are close to fielding a model that meets those criteria."

Asked about the number of medical reservists serving in Afghanistan, Lillywhite admitted there was still a shortage of "trained specialist nurses". He defended the deployment of US surgeons in the UK military hospital in Camp Bastion, Helmand province, as a successful use of Nato resources.

The latest MoD figures estimate that between 2003 and July 2008, in Iraq and Afghanistan, there were 44 military casualties classified as "unexpected survivors" due to medical advances. A new military patient tracking system is expected to give improved information on the treatment of casualties, most of whom are initially received at Selly Oak hospital in Birmingham.

Post-traumatic stress and depression among returning soldiers are recognised as such significant problems that, for the past two years, units returning to the UK from Iraq and Afghanistan have stopped off for "decompression" sessions at a UK military camp in Cyprus.

The 24- to 36-hour pause, according to Surgeon Commander Neil Greenberg, is intended to "alleviate some of the pressures that cause trauma and stress". The idea is that away from the frontline, soldiers can swop stories and wind down with those who understand their immediate problems.

"It's more like going on holiday," Greenberg explained. "After briefings they go down to the beach, use banana boats and have barbeques. They have stand-up comedians, too. The padre also gives them a talk about relationships.

"They are specifically warned about risky driving: troops returning [from fighting] have about twice the risk of dying in road accidents than civilians over the following year."