Low Vision Aids Practice Ajay Kumar Bhootra
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1Low Vision Aids Practice2
3Low Vision Aids Practice
Second Edition
Ajay Kumar Bhootra DOS FAO FOAI FCLI (Aligarh) ICLEP (Hyderabad) Optometrist and Ocularist Kolkata
4Published by
Jitendar P Vij
Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers (P) Ltd
B-3 EMCA House, 23/23B Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi 110 002, India
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Low Vision Aids Practice
© 2007, Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers
All rights reserved. No part of this publication should be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means: electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author and the publisher.
This book has been published in good faith that the material provided by author is original. Every effort is made to ensure accuracy of material, but the publisher, printer and author will not be held responsible for any inadvertent error(s). In case of any dispute, all legal matters are to be settled under Delhi jurisdiction only.
First Edition: 2005 : Himalaya Vision Care Centre
Second Edition: 2007
9788184480436
Typeset at JPBMP typesetting unit
Printed at Gopsons Papers Ltd., A-14, Sector 60, Noida
5
This book is dedicated to all my relatives and friends.6
Every 5 seconds, one person goes blind in the world and one child goes blind every minute!
7Preface to the Second Edition
Severe vision impairment, often referred to as low vision, is a worldwide epidemic. Visual impaired persons are defined as having a vision loss which interferes with everyday living tasks, e.g., reading a newspaper, looking at photographs or recognize faces and for which there is no conventional surgical or therapeutic treatment. Age related macular degeneration accounts nearly for half of all cases, followed by cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, retinitis pigmentosa, optic nerve disease and injury to the eye.
Low vision has long been neglected sub-specialty-socially relevant, but commercially suspect and has been referred to as “the best kept secret in optical” by a few practitioners. But all that has changed as eye care professionals have begun to recognize the inevitability of the wave of new low vision patients that will be seen all over the world.
Data available shows that the number of visually impaired persons is increasing day by day and it is going to be triple by 2028. When we see that less than 50% at the most receive any low vision rehabilitation services, then the magnitude of both the challenge and opportunity is obvious. As a result, low vision is finally becoming an important and recognized part of health care.
Thanks to a number of organizations, the general population is becoming more aware of the availability of low vision rehabilitation services. In the USA, for example, many associations 8offer patients education, video to practitioners, support groups and individuals that is supported by national referral database.
The wave is coming. The number of practitioners is rapidly expanding with the help of institutions that are dedicated to help eye care professionals get started in low vision through training, provision of demonstrating equipments and ongoing support.
Low vision rehabilitation offers the practitioners a feel good niche and the patient a real choice to regain visual independence.
We just have to make sure that we are ready for the wave.
Ajay Kumar Bhootra
9Preface to the First Edition
Low vision can affect everybody—rich and poor, old and young, all races and ethnic backgrounds equally. Still it is more commonly associated with the older population of our society. There is no doubt that there is an increasing need for eye practitioners, to become more involved in the field of low vision rehabilitation, either by actively participating or becoming more involved in the referral process. It is with this in mind that this book has been written. For those practitioners who would like to become involved in the field of low vision rehabilitation or for those who are presently optometry or ophthalmology students, this book provides the basic and essential informations to begin work in this rewarding field both for the practitioners as well as the patients. I believe that even the practising low vision practitioners will also find the informations in this book helpful.
In conclusion, I would like to write that I have tried to simplify the text of the subject to the maximum possibility. I would be highly satisfied if this book serves the purpose of those for whom this has been written.
Ajay Kumar Bhootra10
11Acknowledgements
I salute my two mentors—Sri K K Binani and late Sri S M Bose who taught me, encouraged me and believed in me.
During the course of writing and editing this book, I got the help of many individuals who helped me through this ‘adventure’. I would like to thank them for their help which was provided to me in different ways. I gratefully acknowledge the assistance of the following individuals—
I could have never accomplished all this without their moral support. My special thanks to Mr Sushil Kr Shaw of M/s Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers who has been so enthusiastic in getting this book published.12
Try to close your eyes and imagine of not being able to see for the rest of your life!