Patients suffering from conditions such as stroke, blindness, deafness, incontinence, glaucoma or hydrocephalus will be the first to benefit from a range of new technologies and implantable medical devices developed by a pioneering European consortium of researchers, surgeons and technology companies. Half a century ago, Swedish scientists invented the first implantable heart pacemaker, demonstrating the potential of treating medical conditions by placing electronic devices within the human body. Now scientists are developing new micro-technologies for implantable medical devices of the future.