China boy with eyes gouged out recovering well from operation

This photo taken and released by C-MER Dennis Lam Eye Hospital on Wednesday, Sept 11, 2013, shows Guo Bin, a six-year-old Chinese boy who had his eyes gouged out, lying on his hospital bed as his parents accompany him after his eye surgery in C-MER D
This photo taken and released by C-MER Dennis Lam Eye Hospital on Wednesday, Sept 11, 2013, shows Guo Bin, a six-year-old Chinese boy who had his eyes gouged out, lying on his hospital bed as his parents accompany him after his eye surgery in C-MER Dennis Lam Eye Hospital in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong province. Guo Bin is recovering well from his eye operation and is even picking up some English, his ophthalmologist says. -- PHOTO: AFP / C-MER DENNIS LAM EYE HOSPITAL

HONG KONG - Guo Bin, the six-year-old boy from China whose eyes were gouged out by an attacker last month, is recovering well from his eye operation and is even picking up some English, his ophthalmologist says.

The boy, known as Bin-Bin, was given eye-socket implants on Tuesday in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, in preparation for prosthetic eyes that will give him a normal appearance, even though his vision is gone, the South China Morning Post reported.

The newspaper quoted Dr Dennis Lam as saying that the boy from Shanxi was eating well and his wounds were healing well too, although he felt pain in his left buttock, from where a graft was taken for his left eye implant.

Dr Lam said Bin-Bin even learned some English phrases from chief surgeon Dr Fairooz Manjandavida in an attempt to communicate with her as she does not speak Mandarin.

"He learned to say 'good morning' and 'I love you'," said Dr Lam, founder of the C-MER Dennis Lam Eye Hospital in Shenzhen who helped with the operation. "He is really smart and even mimicked the accent."

Bin-Bin's eyelids were sewn shut and he will not be able to open them for a week so as to protect his wounds, according to the newspaper.

Dr Lam was quoted as saying that the boy was too young to fully understand the operation and knew only that it was for the good of his eyes.

Bin-Bin and his parents travelled to Shenzhen from Shanxi on Sunday to take up an offer of free treatment at Dr Lam's hospital. They are expected to stay for another four to six weeks until the implants have stabilised, with tissues and muscles attaching to them so that they can move like real eyes.

Prosthetic eyes will then be placed in front of each implant to give the appearance of normal eyes.

In a four-hour surgical procedure on Tuesday, an artificial eyeball was placed in Bin-Bin's right eye socket. As the tissue in his left eye socket was too scarred to hold an artificial eye, a graft from his left buttock was used instead.

On August 24, a woman lured Bin-Bin from his family, drugged him and dug his eyes out. He was later found with his face covered in blood.

Police said Bin-Bin's aunt, a suspect in the case, committed suicide six days after the incident.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.