Having low vision can seriously limit life for individuals with macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts, and diabetic retinopathy. Low-tech vision aids such as hand-held magnifiers, stand magnifiers, reading telescopes, spectacle-mounted magnifying lenses, and bright reading lamps often are recommended, but each of these devices has drawbacks, says Jeffrey Sonsino, OD, an optometrist at the Vanderbilt University Eye Institute. Smaller devices can be tiring to use because the hand must constantly move to pick up the print. Larger devices may help, but they’re expensive and can’t be moved easily. A bright reading lamp also helps but isn’t portable. “Somebody has to be sitting in the same spot to use these strategies effectively,” Sonsino says.
Sonsino and colleagues have devised a better solution: low vision eyeglasses. The glasses combine the three factors needed for clearer reading: magnification to enlarge the image, prisms to keep the eyes straight and focused, and LED lighting for bright illumination. The glasses are powered by rechargeable batteries and designed so that when the bows are opened, the light automatically turns on. In a small clinical trial, users reported an 89% improvement in their reading ability. With the assistance of Vanderbilt’s TTO, Sonsino is working with a manufacturer to produce the glasses, which are expected to be available later this year for about the same price as a pair of bifocals.
Sources: 6abc.com and WSOC Charlotte