Visual impairment

Visual Impairment

Visual impairment, also known as vision impairment or vision loss, is a decreased ability to see to a degree that causes problems not fixable by usual means, such as glasses.

Pronunciation

• /ˈvɪʒʊəl ɪmˈpeər.mənt/

Etymology

The term "visual impairment" is derived from the Latin "visus" meaning "sight" and the English "impairment" meaning "the state or fact of being impaired, especially in a specified faculty".

Definition

Visual impairment is a term experts use to describe any kind of vision loss, whether it's someone who cannot see at all (blindness) or someone who has partial vision loss. Some people are completely blind, but many more have what's called legal blindness. They have a 20/200 visual acuity or less, which means they can see at 20 feet what someone with normal vision can see at 200 feet or they have a field of vision of less than 20 degrees in diameter.

Causes

Visual impairment can be caused by a number of factors, including disease, genetics, and injury. Some of the most common causes of visual impairment include macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataract, and diabetic retinopathy.

Related Terms

• Blindness
• Legal blindness
• Macular degeneration
• Glaucoma
• Cataract
• Diabetic retinopathy

See Also

• Visual acuity
• Visual field
• Low vision
• Vision rehabilitation

External links

• Medical encyclopedia article on Visual impairment
• Wikipedia's article - Visual impairment

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