Low Vision

Low vision is a significant vision impairment that results from serious eye disease or injury. This vision loss includes reduced visual acuity (20/70 or worse) or a reduced field of view that glasses, contact lenses, medication, or surgery cannot fully correct.

Low vision can affect children and adults, but is more common in older adults, who face a higher risk of conditions such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, and cataracts.

What Causes Low Vision?

Among the leading causes of low vision are heredity, eye injury or brain injury, or eye diseases such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, cataracts, diabetic retinopathy, or retinitis pigmentosa. Depending on the severity and type of vision impairment, the patient may have some useful vision. Typically, this impairment includes visual acuity worse than 20/70, blurred vision, blind spots, visual field loss, or tunnel vision. In some cases, vision loss meets the criteria for legal blindness (20/200 or less in the better eye) or approaches total blindness.

How Does Low Vision Affect Daily Life?

With significant vision loss, daily tasks such as reading, writing, cooking, housework, watching television, driving, and recognizing people become challenging.

When low vision is diagnosed, it can come as a shock. Initially, it can be an adjustment to learn to function with impaired vision, but many resources and tools can help. Because low vision can limit independence, work, and driving, many patients experience isolation and depression.

Visual Rehabilitation and Visual Aids

Low vision leaves a limited amount of sight intact. Millions of people live with low vision and use visual rehabilitation and aids to function with their remaining sight.

What Are Visual Aids?

These devices help people with low vision make the most of their remaining eyesight. This often includes magnifiers, telescopes, and other tools that enlarge objects for better visibility. Some visual aids reduce glare and enhance contrast, which makes it easier to see. Other low vision aids guide users to rely on non-visual cues, such as sound or touch. Finding the right visual aid involves working with a professional and testing what fits your needs.

How to Make Life with Low Vision Easier

1. Ensure that you have adequate lighting in your home. This may require some trial and error with different lights and voltages to determine what works best for you.
2. Use a magnifier. There is a vast selection of magnifiers available, ranging from hand-held to stand magnifiers. Binoculars and spectacle-mounted magnifiers are also an option.
3. Your optometrist may recommend lens tints that improve vision or reduce light sensitivity.
4. Use large print books for reading. Alternatively, try digital recordings or MP3s.
5. Use high contrast for writing. Try writing in large letters with a broad black pen on a white piece of paper or board.
6. Adding high-contrast stripes on steps can help prevent falls and support independence.
7. Research available technology that can help simplify daily tasks.