The artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet may recover enough of his sight to work again, doctors treating him at a German hospital have said, according to BBC News.

Sergei Filin was the victim of an acid attack in January that damaged his eyes and disfigured his face.

He appeared at a news conference alongside doctors, wearing dark glasses, a scarf and a hat to cover much of his damaged skin.

A dancer at the Moscow-based ballet has been arrested over the attack.

Pavel Dmitrichenko is accused of masterminding the attack, in which a masked man threw sulphuric acid in Filin's face.

At Friday March 15 news conference Dr Martin Hermel, a surgeon at the Aachen University Clinic where Filin is being treated, said there was "good hope for regaining usable vision" that may allow him to return to work.

But doctors also warned that "such chemical damage to the eyes demands complex, long-term treatment", and predicted that Filin would spend "months rather than weeks" in treatment.