HANDS ON - Focus On Low Vision
Lack of Awareness

	NATIONAL EYE INSTITUTE, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

The just-released results of a survey commissioned by the American Optometric Association (AOA) confirm that consumers' lack of awareness remains one of vision care's biggest challenges.

This is especially true for low vision, where respondents showed low levels of awareness not just of conditions, but of the term "low vision" itself. Some of the findings of this AOA study were presented at its annual Optometry's Meeting, held this June in Grapevine, Texas.

Harris Interactive conducted the phone survey of 1,018 adults for the AOA. In terms of familiarity with vision loss, only 27 percent of those interviewed knew what low vision is. And among the high-risk African-American population, even fewer (21 percent) were familiar with it.

"This is of serious concern for optometrists who work every day to preserve the overall eye health and vision potential of the American public," says R. Tracy Williams, OD, newly elected chair of the AOA's Low Vision Rehab-ilitation section.

Here are a few more survey findings that show the degree to which age, social, and regional differences are reflected in basic knowledge—and especially the lack thereof—about eye health.

PRESBYOPIA: Those surveyed say that as a normal part of aging, vision starts to deteriorate at age 39. According to the AOA, however, presbyopia "typically starts in the mid-forties and early fifties."

INCOME VS. KNOW-LEDGE: While it is generally assumed that higher income households (those with annual incomes of more than $75,000) would know more about vision care and eye health than families at lower income and education levels, the survey did not substantiate that premise.

In fact, some of the lowest income households surveyed answered more questions correctly than did those surveyed from high-income families.

AGE CORRELATION: More than half of those surveyed who are between the ages of 35 and 44 were not familiar with low vision conditions.

DOUBLING DANGER

This basic lack of knowledge is even more dangerous given the expected rapid rise in the senior population. The AOA cites reporting by the National Eye Health Education Program that "the vast majority of people age 65 and older with low vision are unaware of services and devices that could help them improve the quality of their lives. They say the need for information will increase as the number of Americans who are at greatest risk, those ages 65 and older, doubles over the next 30 years."

Once patients, their families, and caregivers understand more about what low vision is, the next—and just as important—step is to communicate to these groups that there is hope.

Though "not being able to cure vision loss can make patients lose hope," Williams adds that "the good news is there is hope for treating the condition...in the form of low vision rehabilitation."