Visual Impairment

• Visual impairment (VI) refers to a significant functional loss of vision that cannot be corrected by medication, surgical operation, or ordinary optical lenses such as spectacles.

Loss of visual field:• Photophobia- inability to look at

sight• Diplopia- double vision• Visual distortion or distortion of images• Visual perceptual difficulties or difficulties of perception • Or any combination of the above

features

Levels Of Visual

Impairment

1. MILD VISUAL IMPAIRMENT• Can read relatively larger characters

• No difficulty in identifying shapes, colours and brightness contracts

2. MODERATE VISUAL IMPAIRMENT• Can tell shapes and colours of

objects and can distinguish between brightness and darkness.

•Can only read characters with larger size and broader strokes.

3. SEVERE VISUAL IMPAIRMENT:•Can only distinguish more obvious changes in brightness and darkness. • May not see anything (completely

blind).

TYPES OF VISUAL IMPAIRMENT:

• Low visual acuity • Blindness• Legal blindness • Visual acuity

SYMPTOMS :

• Daily Activities: Squinting to get an object in focus, Trouble locating familiar objects in a familiar environment, Wearing mismatched clothing.

• Mobility: Leaning against the wall when walking , Running into objects, Difficulty walking on uneven surfaces.

• Eating/Drinking: Difficulty getting food onto a utensil and serving from a platter, Frequently spilling food

• Reading/Writing: Difficulty writing on the lines of a piece of paper, Frequent complaining that the lighting is inadequate for reading or writing

Causes

1. Inherited conditions of blindness and vision impairment

2. Infections of the eyes3. AIDS related visual

impairment

Injury to Eyes Amblyopia

Cataract

Trachoma Diabetic retinopathy

Glaucoma Age Macular degeneration

Cancer of eyes

EPIDEMIOLOGY

• By age: More than 82% of all people who are blind are 50 years of age and older. 1.4 million blind children below age 15.

• By gender: females have a significantly higher risk of being visually impaired than males.

• By geography: . More than 90% of the world's visually impaired live in developing countries.

COMMUNICATION BARRIERS:

Many people are uncomfortable with communicating with the blind, and this can cause communication barriers

.• Lack of facial expressions, mimics, or

body gestures/responses• Non-verbal gestures that could imply

the visually impaired individual not appearing interested

• Speaking when not anticipated or not speaking when anticipated

• Fear of offending the visually impaired• Standing too close and invading the

personal comfort level

• Having to exercise or ignore feelings of pity

• Being uncomfortable with touching objects or people.

• A look of detachment or disengagement.

• Dependency

Diagnosis

Tests for visual impairment

1. Snellen test

• Also known as the visual acuity test.

• Snellen’s chart is used.

2. Visual field test• a person can see without tilting or

turning one’s head. • This measures the peripheral vision

of the eyes.

3. Tonometry test• uses specialized instruments to

determine fluid pressure inside the eye to evaluate for glaucoma.

4. Ocular Motility Assessment• This tests if there is squint of other

problems in the movement of the eyeballs.

Other tests:

• Visually evoked potential (VEP)

• Electroretinogram (ERG)

• Electro-oculogram (EOG)

Treatment

• Control of diabetes• Cotaract surgery• Magnification systems• Glaucoma• Drugs: The drugs may include Beta-

blockers like betaxolol hydrochloride or carbonic anhydrase inhibitors dorzolamide and Sympathomimetics like brimonidine tartrate.

Optical aids• -Improving far sight:

TV,Theater, Cinema• -Improving near sight:

Reading, Writing, Crafts• -Improving sensitivity to contrast:Special lights,Magnified games,Watches,special phones, etc.

EDUCATING CHILDREN WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT

•  What is IDEA?• Three basic elements in educating visually

impaired children -specialized services, books and materials in appropriate media (including braille), as well as specialized equipment and technology -a full range of program options and support services so that the Individualized Education Program (IEP) team can select the most appropriate placement -be adequate personnel preparation programs to train staff to provide specialized services which address the unique academic and non-academic curriculum needs

• COMPUTERS• PHONICS• ELECTRONIC AIDS

INSTITUTIONS FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED

CHILDREN IN PAKISTAN

AKAB SCHOOL FOR BLIND:Established in 2000Located in Mirpur Azad Kashmir Aziz Jehan Begum

Trust for the Blind:established in 1989 by Ms. Salma Kishwar Jan

Ida Rieu School:founded in 1923 in Karachi

Government High School for Blind Girls:Shamsabad, Rawalpindi

Govt. Sunrise Institute for the Blind:Ravi Road, Lahore

PREVENTION

• Regular eye examinations:Most people should have their eyes

tested at least once every two years.It is very important for drivers and

people whose eyesight may be affected by their occupation, such as those who use computer monitors, to have regular eye examinations

Children should also have regular eye examinations.

- The Health Service Executive (HSE) is obliged to provide optical services free of charge to certain groups.

There are several other ways to reduce the risk of visual impairment:

• Protect your eyes from the sun. Ultra violet (UV) rays from the sun can damage your eyesight so in bright sunlight, wear a pair of good-quality sunglasses that protect your eyes from both UVA and UVB rays.

• Find out whether there is a history of glaucoma or eye disease in your family.

• Hypertension-Hypertension is when the pressure of the blood in your bloodstream is regularly above 140/90 mmHG.

• Pain- Pain is an unpleasant physical or emotional feeling that your body produces as a warning sign that it has been damaged.

CONCLUSION:

Visual impairment is increasing especially among older people.

Communication and different ways of being able to communicate with visually impaired clients must be tailored to individual needs and

available at all times.