Low Vision, What Does It Mean?
What is low vision?
Low vision is a visual impairment, not correctable by standard glasses,
contact lenses, medicine, or surgery, that interferes with a person's ability to
perform everyday activities.
What are the warning signs of low vision?
Some warning
signs include the following:
- Trouble reading, cooking, or sewing.
- Trouble seeing because the lights don't
seem as bright as usual.
- Trouble recognizing the faces of friends and relatives.
- Trouble crossing the street or reading signs.
A person who is having these
vision difficulties should immediately make an appointment with an eye care
professional for an eye examination. If the person's vision cannot be treated by
conventional methods, such as glasses, contact lenses, medication, or surgery,
then he or she should ask the eye care professional for information about vision
rehabilitation. These services may include eye examinations, a low vision
evaluation, training on how to use visual and adaptive devices, support groups,
and training on how to perform everyday activities in new ways.
What causes low vision?
Low vision can result from a variety of diseases, disorders, and injuries
that affect the eye. Many people with low vision have age-related macular
degeneration, cataract, glaucoma, or diabetic retinopathy. Age-related macular
degeneration accounts for almost 45 percent of all cases of low vision.
Who is at higher risk for low vision?
People age 65 and older, as well as African Americans and Hispanics over age
45, are at higher risk. African Americans and Hispanics are at higher risk for
low vision because they are at higher risk for developing diabetes and diabetic
retinopathy, and African Americans are at a higher risk for developing glaucoma.
How many people have low vision?
Approximately 14 million Americans--about one out of every 20 people--have
low vision. About 135 million people around the world have low vision.
[The Lighthouse. (1994). The Lighthouse National Survey on Vision Loss: The
Experience, Attitudes, and Knowledge of Middle-Aged and Older Americans. New
York: The Lighthouse, Inc., Louis Harris and Associates, Inc.]
Is the number of people with low vision expected to grow?
Yes. About one in eight Americans is now 65 or older. That number is expected
to grow, while mortality rates are expected to drop. By 2030, the number of
Americans 65 and over is projected to double.
How much does low vision cost the country?
More than $22 billion is spent annually on care and services for people who
are blind or have visual impairments. These costs include treatment, education,
loss of personal income, and associated costs, such as Social Security
disability benefits.
[National Alliance for Eye and Vision Research. (1995). A Vision of Hope for
Older Americans: Progress and Opportunities in Eye and Vision Research. An
official report to the White House Conference on Aging.]
How does low vision affect people's lives?
People with low vision experience physical, economic, and psychological
changes that diminish their quality of life. Low vision affects daily routines
(walking, going outside, cooking), leisure activities (reading, sewing,
traveling, sports), and the ability to perform job-related functions that can
lead to a loss of income. These consequences often lead people with low vision
to become confused, grief-stricken, fearful, anxious, and depressed. In
addition, people with low vision who lose their depth perception are at greater
risk of falling and injuring themselves.
Do people with low vision experience problems on the job?
One-third of all people with visual impairments who responded to a 1994
survey by The Lighthouse, a vision advocacy and social service organization,
said that their vision problems created some difficulty in performing their
jobs. Half of all respondents said that loss of income as a result of low vision
was a somewhat serious or very serious problem.
[The Lighthouse. (1994). The Lighthouse National Survey on Vision Loss: The
Experience, Attitudes, and Knowledge of Middle-Aged and Older Americans. New
York: The Lighthouse, Inc., Louis Harris and Associates, Inc.]
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