visual impairment

Visual impairment refers to sight that has less quality, strength, or value than normal. Sight has become weakened or damaged in some way.

 

Some people are born with visual impairments. Vision changes can also occur in people of any age for a number of reasons, including conditions within the eyes, as well as conditions within the brain. The change in a person's sight may be minor or severe. Vision problems can range from an inability to see certain colors to blurred vision or complete loss of sight. The visual impairment may be acute, meaning occuring suddenly, or chronic, which means that the visual changes last for a long period of time.

 

Following are common symptoms of visual impairment:

 

A person may be born with visual impairments, or they may occur later in life. Common causes of visual impairment include the following: damage to the visual nerves, such as that caused by head injury,brain tumor, or infectiondiabetes glaucoma, or abnormally high pressure inside the eye injuries to the eye, such as corneal injuries brain damage, such as that from a stroke, or brain attack refractive errors, which means that objects appear blurry only when they are up close or when they are far away. This is commonly known as being nearsighted or farsighted.

Prevention of visual impairment, when possible, is related to the cause. Prevention includes the following: screening for vision problems, which is often part of a routine checkup by a healthcare professional. All infants and children should be screened. This can help detect a condition called strabismus, or so-called lazy eye, which needs early treatment to prevent blindness in one eye. Screening for glaucoma is very important for people who are older than 40, especially those who are black or have a family history of this condition. controlling conditions such as diabetes that can lead to vision impairment. Controlling blood sugar levels has been shown to prevent or delay vision problems from this condition. Controlling glaucoma can also help prevent vision loss from this condition. wearing safety glasses or goggles during hazardous activities. Individuals should take care to keep foreign objects and chemicals out of the eyes. Sunlight can also harm the eyes. People should never look directly at the sun and are advised to wear sunglasses outside. following directions for proper wearing, cleaning, and storing of the lenses, for those who wear contact lenses. People must also watch for problems that can be caused by the lenses. These may include corneal injuries or corneal infections. providing regular prenatal care for pregnant women to help prevent problems in the developing baby seeking early evaluation and treatment for eye infections

The role of the eye care professional is to help determine the cause of visual impairment. This may be possible after a complete history and physical exam. First, the professional needs to ask about the eyes, any vision problems, and general health. Next, he or she will test the eye muscles to see if eye movements are normal. Peripheral vision, or the ability to see out of the side of the eyes, can be tested as well.