Low Vision

If you have difficulty seeing because of low vision due to macular degeneration, glaucoma, or another eye disease, turn to Eye Luv Lucy Optometry in San Jose, California. Lucy Yen, OD, and her expert team can find the cause of low vision and treat it to help you see better and improve your quality of life. Call the office to schedule an appointment or book one online today. 

What is low vision?

Low vision is a vision impairment that your eye specialist can correct with contacts, glasses, or surgery. While you aren’t blind because some sight remains, you may experience the following symptoms of low vision:

• Poor night vision
• Blind spots
• Blurry vision
• Hazy vision
• Loss of central vision
• Loss of peripheral (side) vision

You might have a difficult time watching television, reading, driving, or even recognizing faces because of low vision. Treatment can improve your vision and give you a better quality of life.

What are the risk factors for low vision?

While anyone can develop low vision, certain factors boost your risk of experiencing it. Examples include:

• Glaucoma
• Macular degeneration
• Diabetes
• Diabetic retinopathy 
• Stargardt’s disease 
• Retinitis pigmentosa 
• Other inherited eye disorders
• Albinism
• Older age
• Eye cancer
• Brain injuries 

Your risk of developing low vision increases after age 45 and goes up significantly after age 75. However, kids can also develop macular degeneration and low vision. Routine eye exams with Eye Luv Lucy Optometry allow your optometry team to detect low vision and treat it early in some cases. 

Early detection and treatment of eye diseases and properly managing diabetes if you have it are ways you can lower your risk of developing low vision. 

How does my eye doctor diagnose low vision?

To find out if you have low vision, your optometrist completes comprehensive vision testing and an eye exam. They use magnifiers, specialized lighting, and eye charts to test visual acuity, visual fields, and depth perception. 

Your eye care specialist determines your level of vision and discusses your wishlist for treatment outcomes. Low vision evaluations at Eye Luv Lucy Optometry take about 90 minutes.

What are common low vision treatment options?

The Eye Luv Lucy Optometry team can help you magnify images, reduce glare, move images to your peripheral vision, improve contrast, and slow or stop the progression of your disease. They specialize in treating low vision using telescopes. 

Effective treatment options include:

• Spectacle miniature telescopes 
• Implantable miniature telescopes 
• ClearImage II® microscope glasses 
• Prismatic spectacle glasses 
• E-Scoop® contrast-enhancing glasses 
• Nutritional counseling 
• Nutritional supplements
• Illumination counseling
• Driving rehabilitation 
• Glaucoma vision loss rehabilitation 
• Light-filtering lenses
• Magnifying glasses
• Hand magnifiers
• Closed-circuit television
• Reading prisms
• Argus® II retinal prosthesis
• Non-optical low vision aids

Examples of non-optical low vision aids include text-reading software, high-contrast clocks and watches, talking watches and clocks, large print publications, and watches, phones, and clocks with enlarged numbers.

Your Eye Luv Lucy Optometry team personalizes each low vision treatment to improve your sight and enhance your quality of life. Call the office to book an appointment or schedule one online today.