Systems and Methods for a Surgical Tissue Manipulator

A minimally invasive apparatus for manipulating tissue in an eye of a patient, comprising:

• an elongate member configured to be inserted through a minimally invasive surgical opening in the eye of the patient, the elongate member having a proximal end, a distal end, and a lumen extending through a length of the elongate member from the proximal end to the distal end;
• a hand-held controller coupled to the proximal end of the elongate member;
• and
• a plurality of grasping fibers extending through at least a portion of the lumen and beyond the distal end thereof, the grasping fibers being adjustable by the hand-held controller to advance or retract relative to the elongate member by altering a distance between distal ends of the grasping fibers and the distal end of the elongate member.

A method of positioning retinal tissue that has detached from a back surface of an eye of a patient, the method comprising:

• making an incision in the eye;
• inserting a retinal manipulator into the eye through the incision, the retinal manipulator having two pluralities of grasping fibers at a distal end thereof;
• grasping a portion of the retinal tissue that is detached from the back surface of the eye between the two pluralities of grasping fibers;
• and
• maneuvering the retinal tissue by maneuvering the grasped portion with the retinal manipulator.