Each year millions of Americans will experience low. While vision loss can occur at any age, it is most common in people over the age of 55. The definition of low vision is that prescription eyeglasses, contact lenses, medicine, and even surgery may not improve results. All aspects of a person’s life can be affected by irreversible vision loss.
Low vision specialist in Minnesota can tell the difference between normal vision changes in the eye and vision changes caused by eye disease.
A patient with low vision will have visual acuity of 20/70 or less with corrected lenses. Some patients are born with low vision or develop it later in life. Low vision is caused by eye diseases or some other health condition such as macular degeneration, cataracts, glaucoma, and diabetes.
Vision loss can also occur after an eye injury. Whatever the cause, many times lost vision is not recoverable. However, it can be managed with the proper treatment.
Recognizing the signs of vision loss are the first step in treatment. Some people have difficulty recognizing the faces of friends and relatives. Others will experience difficulty doing close-up work like reading, cooking, or sewing. Inside house lights will seem dimmer, and street signs will be difficult to see.
Vision changes like these should be reported to a Low vision specialist in Minnesota. Typically, the earlier the issue is diagnosed, the better the chance of successful treatment.
It is important to talk to your eye care specialist about your vision changes. Your eye care specialist may recommend low optical aids such as magnifiers, telescopes, TV reading systems, and additional home lighting.
There are a number of non-optical aids low vision patients can try: Large-print books, auditory devices, large screen tablets and computers, playing cards with large numbers, telephones with large numbers, and other devices with large letters and numbers.