Low Vision Aids

People with low vision cannot see with the simple glasses of myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism and presbyopia or with contact lenses. They need low vision aids to cope with daily activities.

Who has low vision?

Low vision is possessed by people whose visual acuity is lower than 4/10 or whose field of vision is less than 20 degrees. They see blurry even when they wear their glasses or nothing changes in their vision whether they are wearing or not wearing glasses.

Categories of low vision aids

Low vision aids are divided into two categories:

• Those used for close-up tasks such as reading, writing and using a computer
• Those related to distant vision such as watching TV, recognizing faces, public transport, etc.

Low vision aids are determined and selected exclusively by the Optometrist specialized in low vision based on the age, occupations and needs of the patient.

Low vision aids can be:
for occasional use

• Handheld magnifying glasses (magnification from 1.5x to 12x times)
• Desktop magnifiers (magnification from 3x to 20x times)

for unlimited use and training of the patient’s vision

• special microscope glasses for reading (magnification from 2x to 20x times)
• prismatic reading glasses (power from +4D to +16D)
• TV watching glasses (magnification from 1.5x to 8x times)
• telescopic glasses for long distances (magnification from 2x to 8x times)
• electronic autofocus glasses for all distances: close, intermediate and distant (magnification from 2x to 16x times)
• desktop or portable e-readers (magnification from 2x to 60x times)

A patient with low vision usually needs more than one low-vision visual aid, and the choice depends on:

• the disease
• the stage of the disease
• the visual acuity
• the field of vision
• the perception of bright contrasts

Low vision aids, applied to glasses (microscope – glasses, prismatic glasses and telescopic glasses), significantly improve the visual ability of the patient by enlarging the image projected on the retina.
Low vision aids must be used under the guidance of the Optometrist specialized in low vision, who will indicate techniques and training strategies so that the patient remains active, independent and productive.