Support and Services for Low Vision

Functional Definition - Most eye care professionals describe Low Vision as permanently reduced vision that cannot be corrected with regular glasses, contact lenses, medicine, or surgery.  Low Vision interferes with daily activities because one does not have good enough vision to do the things that need to be done. 

Visual Acuity Definition - Low Vision is a condition caused by eye disease or injury, in which visual acuity is 20/70 or worse in the better-seeing eye and cannot be corrected or improved with regular glasses, contact lenses , medicine, or surgery.  In addition to uncorrected vision, the visual field can be constricted to 30 degrees or less.

Eye Diseases including: Macular Degeneration, Glaucoma, Diabetic Retinopathy, Optic Atrophy, and Retinitis Pigmentosa 

Strokes 

Eye Injuries 

Congenital Eye Disease: Optic nerve hypoplasia (small optic nerve), Cataract, and Glaucoma Cerebral/cortical visual impairment (from brain damage)           

Low Vision will exhibit degrees of visual impairment:

• Moderate Visual Impairment - Snellen visual acuity = 20/70 to 20/160           
• Severe Visual Impairment - Snellen visual acuity = 20/200 to 20/400 OR                 Visual Field of 20 degrees or less     
• Profound Visual Impairment - Snellen visual acuity = 20/500 to 20/1000 OR Visual Field of 10 degrees or less 

The Low Vision professional evaluating your needs will ask you many questions concerning your daily routine to determine which assistive devices will be best for you. During the evaluation, you will experience what these devices can do to improve your daily living.        

Low Vision techniques to help with everyday tasks: 

• Improve lighting throughout the living area. 
• Use a desk light with a high lumen bulb.  
• Reduce glare by using wrap-around sunglasses while outside. 
• Increase contrast by using heavy felt tip markers when taking notes or making lists.  

Optical Devices:

• Magnifying Spectacles - Worn like eyeglasses to keep your hands free when reading, threading a needle, or doing close-up tasks. 
• Stand Magnifiers - Positioned above the object or words you are looking at. Helpful to people with tremors or arthritis. 
• Hand Magnifiers - Hold these over the print when reading. Some even have built-in lights.
• Telescopes - These are used to see writing or objects far away. Some telescopes  can be attached to eyeglasses and others are hand held like binoculars.          

Non-Optical Devices:  

• Video Magnifiers - They use a camera and a screen to magnify print, pictures or small objects. Some can even read text aloud. 
• Audio Books - You can enjoy books as the device reads the story aloud. 
• Smartphones and Tablets - Lets you change text size and adjust contrast. 
• Computers - Text sizes can be adjusted and can even be connected to a large screenTV for enhanced viewing.