EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS MATERIAL WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY 4:3

A Chinese boy - whose eyeballs were gouged out last month - has undergone surgery for implants that will not restore his sight but will go some way to restoring his appearance.

Doctors who performed the surgery were taken aback by the boy's courage.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) SURGEON AND FOUNDER OF HOSPITAL DENNIS LAM SAYING:

"So Little Bin Bin was a brave boy. So I asked him, 'Will you cry?' He said, 'I want to be a brave man, and therefore I won't cry.' So from the picture you can see that, you know, right before entering the operating theatres, he's actually smiling."

The four-hour operation was a success say doctors, who will have to perform a second procedure to finish the implants.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF SURGEON FAIROOZ MANJANDAVIDA SAYING:

"Yes, in another maybe six months, he should be looking as a normal person, but then I repeat again, this surgery was not done