Famous People with Vision Loss – Part II

Here is part two of our look at famous people with vision loss. The focus this time is the creative minds of artists, actors and musicians.

Artists

Georgia O’Keeffe (1887-1986) – Best known for her paintings of enlarged flowers, New York skyscrapers, and New Mexico landscapes, she was recognized as the “Mother of American modernism”. In 1972, O’Keeffe’s eyesight was compromised by age-related macular degeneration (AMD), leading to the loss of central vision and leaving her with only peripheral vision. She stopped oil painting without assistance in 1972, but continued working in pencil and charcoal until 1984.

Claude Monet (1840-1926) – A French impressionist painter who had cataracts that blurred his vision and caused a severe loss of color perception. After complaining about his cataracts for ten years, he had cataract surgery in 1923. Those paintings before the surgery have more of a reddish tone, while those painted before his cataracts and after the surgery show more blue tones.

Edgar Degas (1834-1917) – A French artist known for his paintings, sculptures, prints, and drawings. He had a chronic and progressive retinal disease that made him sensitive to light and caused him to lose his central vision. Frustrated by these limitations he switched to oil pastels because less precision was needed. He finally resorted to sculpting to be able to utilize his sense of touch and feeling in order to continue to create art.

Actors

Johnny Depp (1963-) – Known for his many movie roles, Depp doesn’t let his vision loss stop his career. Besides correcting his blurred vision, the tinted lenses of the glasses he wears also help with Meares-Irien ‘visual stress’ syndrome, which causes dizziness, discomfort and eye pain. He is also nearly blind in his left eye.

Issac Lidsky (1979-) – A child actor known for his part in the Saved by the Bell: The New Class TV series, he was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) at 13 and was completely blind by 25 years of age. He changed the course of his career, becoming a lawyer. He was a law clerk for Justices Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 2008-09, making him the the first blind US Supreme Court clerk.

Jon Weller (1975-) – A TV actor who has performed on many shows, he is best known for his recurring role of toxicologist Henry Andrews on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. He has been diagnosed with RP.

Dame Judith Dench (1934-) – A actress has had a long career in theater and film, receiving many awards including ten BAFTAs, six Olivier Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, two Golden Globes, an Academy Award, and a Tony Award. She is well-known for the part of M in the James Bond series of films. In 2012 She announced that she has age-related macular degeneration (AMD), but has no intentions of slowing down. Scripts are now provided to her in a larger font.

Musicians

Ray Charles (1930-2004) – He was born with congenital glaucoma which resulted in blindness by the age of 7. This American singer, songwriter, musician and composer, received multiple Grammys, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a Kennedy Centers Honoree.

Stevie Wonder (1950-) – He is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer who signed with Motown Records at the age of 12. He has won 25 Grammys and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He is blind due to retinopathy of prematurity due to excessive oxygen in his incubator when he was born.

Andrea Bocelli (1958-) – An Italian classical tenor, he was born with congenital glaucoma, but lost his vision at the age of 12 following a soccer accident in which he was hit in the head. He started playing piano when he was six, also learning the saxophone and flute. Bocelli has recorded fourteen solo studio albums, of both pop and classical music, three greatest hits albums, and nine complete operas, selling over 75 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time.

Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996) – An American jazz singer often referred to as the First Lady of Song. She also appeared on TV and in movies. She won 14 Grammy Awards, National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She was diagnosed later in life with diabetic retinopathy due to her advanced diabetes, which also cost her both legs.

Do you know of any creative famous people You could add to this list? Please share them below in the comments.

4/30/15

Susan DeRemer, CFRE
Vice President of Development
Discovery Eye Foundation

Famous People with Vision Loss – Part I

With all the recent news about Rosanne Barr’s vision loss due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma, I thought it would be interesting to see other famous people with vision loss who didn’t let it stop their impact on the world around them. Today’s post will focus on writers, politicians, business and military leaders, scientists. Thursday we will explore artists, actors and musicians.

Authors

Harper Lee (1926-) – Best known for her 1960 Pulitzer Prize winning book To Kill a Mockingbird, she has been diagnosed with AMD. Her second novel, Go Set a Watchman, which was actually written before To Kill a Mockingbird, will be published this July.

John Milton (1608-1674) – English poet who wrote the poem Paradise Lost, among others, and became blind at the age of 43.

Alice Walker (1944-) – American author and activist who wrote The Color Purple which won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award in 1983. She was blinded in one eye as a child when shot with a BB gun.

Joseph Pulitzer (1847-1911) – American newspaper publisher who established the prestigious journalism award, the Pulitzer Prize. He became blind at the age of 42 due to a retinal detachment.

James Thurber (1894-1961) – American humorist who switched his attention from sports to writing when his brother shot him in the eye with an arrow while recreating the legend of William Tell shooting the apple off his son’s head.

James Joyce (1882-1941) – Irish novelist and poet who had numerous eye surgeries for various conditions starting with iritis.

Stephen King (1947-) – American author of contemporary horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, science fiction, and fantasy. He has been diagnosed with AMD.

Leaders

Horatio Nelson (1758-1805) – British naval admiral lost an eye as a young seaman. He was said to have used this to his advantage by raising his telescope to his blind and then claim not to see the flags of surrender being raised by enemy ships.

Thomas Gore (1870-1949) – Blinded as a child, he became the first senator from Oklahoma and the first blind member of the US Senate.

Steve Wynn (1942-) – A well-known business leader having helped build up Las Vegas, and the owner of The Wynn and The Encore resorts, he was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa in 1971 and declared legally blind in 2010.

David Alexander Paterson (1954-) – He was the first African American Governor of New York and the second legally blind governor of any state, after Bob Riley of Arkansas. Paterson became blind at the age of three months when an ear infection spread to his optic nerve.

Willie Brown (1934-) – He spent over 30 years in the California State Assembly and served as the first African American Mayor of San Francisco for eight years. He has retinitis pigmentosa.

Hellen Keller (1880-1968) – She was an American activist, lecturer and author. She was the first deaf/blind person to graduate from college. At the age of 19 months she came down with infection that left her deaf and blind. She inspired the Lions Clubs International to become “knight of the blind,” leading them to focus their community service efforts toward vision-related causes.

Science & Medicine

Dr. Jacob Bolotin (1888-1961) – Was the first congenitally blind person to receive a medical license. This Chicago physician’s specialties were diseases of the heart and lungs.

John Glenn (1921-) – He was the first man to orbit the earth in 1963 on the Friendship 7 mission. He suffers from glaucoma.

Joseph Plateau (1801-1883) – Belgian physicist who invented an early stroboscopic device, the phenakistiscope, in 1836 that allowed still images to create an animated effect. It eventually led to the development of cinema. He performed an experiment in which he gazed directly into the sun for 25 seconds, leading to his eventual blindness.

Join us next Tuesday for part two.

4/28/15

Susan DeRemer, CFRE
Vice President of Development
Discovery Eye Foundation

Driving and Age-Related Macular Degeneration

The issue of driving and age-related macular degeneration is a particularly sensitive one for seniors losing their vision. Driving means independence and most people want to hold on to their cars as long as possible. When is it time to stop?

A research survey by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Age-Lab and The Hartford Financial Services Group involved 3,824 drivers over age 50, asking them how and why they limited their driving.

The study found that two-thirds of the drivers self-regulated their activities in the car, restricting their driving for certain condition. Time of day was a common factor, with some people choosing to stay home at night or dusk. Bad weather conditions and heavy traffic were other conditions. Over time, drivers developed conscious strategies to compensate for failing vision, slower reflexes and stiffer joints.

Statistically, older drivers are actually very safe drivers, although over age 75, the accident rate per mile increases. The study found that health and medical conditions contributed far more to driving restrictions than age alone.

About ten percent of the nation’s drivers are over 65. However, by 2030, when one in five Americans are over age 65, this percentage will skyrocket. Consider that 23-40% of people over age 65 have macular degeneration – that ís a lot of drivers with a potential visual impairment.

Making the Decision

If your macular degeneration is causing a problem when you drive, you are most likely aware of it. Or, perhaps a friend or family member has pointed it out to you. Does this mean you should immediately stop driving? Not necessarily.

What you should do immediately is ask yourself some critical questions. How are you functioning when you drive during the day? What about dusk, dawn and cloudy days? Bright sunlight? At night?

Here are six important questions:

Do you have difficulties reading clearly and rapidly all the instruments on a carís dashboard?
Do you have difficulties reading road signs, or if you are currently driving, do you notice and understand the signs in time to react to them with comfort?
Do other cars on the road appear to “pop” into and out of your field of vision unexpectedly?
While on the road, do you drive well below the speed limit and slower than most cars around you?
Do you have difficulties positioning yourself on the road, with respect to other cars, lane markers, curves, sidewalks, parking spaces, etc.?
Do you find yourself feeling confused and/or disoriented on the road?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, you may want to suspend your driving until you consult a specialist. If your answers indicate that you may have a problem under certain conditions (i.e., dim light or night) you may want to suspend your driving under those conditions until you consult a specialist further.

This questionnaire is from an excellent book, “Driving With Confidence, A Practical Guide to Driving With Low Vision” by Eli Peli and Doron Peli. Dr. Eli Peli is a Senior Scientist at the Schepens Eye Research Institute and Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School. Their book contains a practical program to help you maximize your chances of retaining your driving privileges. It also provides a detailed description of driving vision regulations in every state as does the AAA website.

Other Useful Resources

AARP Driver Safety Program – Largest classroom driver refresher course specially designed for motorists age 50 and older. It is intended to help older drivers improve their skills while teaching them to avoid accidents and traffic violations.

AAA Safety Foundation for Traffic – Tips on driving and resources for other transportation options.

Summary

There are many ways to stay safe and maintain your independence. Just be attentive to your own abilities and find out all you can about your options.

4/21/15

Judith Delgado
Executive Director
Macular Degeneration Partnership
A program of Discovery Eye Foundation

How to Help a Blind or Visually Impaired Person with Mobility

You as a Guide
As the spouse, partner or friend of a person that has low or no vision, it is hard to know when to step and help. You don’t want to offend them by jumping in and making them feel incapable, nor do you want to stand by and have them stumble along, possibly hurting themselves.

Here are few pointers to help a blind or visually impaired person with mobility so you can be supportive and considerate.

First and most importantly, never assume the person wants or needs your help. Always ask first and never force the person to accept your help.
If your offer of help is accepted, ask if the person would like you on their right or left, then the tap them with your appropriate elbow so the person needing help can grasp slightly above the elbow.
Relax and walk at a comfortable, consistent pace, about a half step ahead.
When navigating obstacles, guiding signals, along with verbal cues, are helpful. Examples:
Curb – brief pause and state “we are approaching a curb and it is slanted upwards.”
Narrow door or passage – you enter first moving your guiding arm behind the small of your back and let them know you are moving through a doorway or narrow space and which direction the door opens so they can move to the appropriate side.
Stairs – stop at the edge of the first step and let the other person know if the steps are up or down, where the railing is (make sure it is on the side of their free hand), and if there is anything special about the steps (they are uneven, very steep, have an overly wide tread, etc.). If there are just a few steps let them know, “you will take 4 steps down.” The will follow one step behind you, with one hand on the handrail and the other holding your arm. Pause after completing the stairs.
Escalators and revolving doors – Use similar guiding cues as you do for the stairs. Let them know when to step onto the escalator and when to get ready to get off. If the person you are guiding is uncomfortable with escalators or revolving doors, use the elevator and regular doors which all buildings are required to have.
Chair – when approaching a chair, place the hand of the person being guided on the back or side of the chair, letting them know which direction the chair is facing.
Never leave a person who is blind or visually impaired in “free space.” Make sure they are in contact with a wall, railing or some other stable object until you return.

If They Use a Guide Dog
Guide dogs are invaluable to people that are blind or partially sighted. They allow their owners a sense of independence. But how should you respond to a guide dog who is working?

Never distract the dog from its duty, so don’t pet the dog without asking.
Before asking a questions of a person handling a dog, allow them to complete the task at hand.
Remain calm when you approach, never teasing or speaking to the dog.
Do not offer the dog food or other treats. They are fed on a schedule and follow a specific diet to keep them healthy. Deviations from their routine can disrupt their regular and ad relieving schedules, seriously inconveniencing their handlers.
Do not offer toys to a guide dog. Though they are treated as pets when they are not in their harnesses, they are only allowed specific toys. In their harness they don’t play with toys.
Do not call out to the guide dog or obstruct its path, as it can break the dog’s concentration which could prove to be dangerous to its handler.
In some cases the person with low or no vision may prefer to take your arm above the elbow and allow their dog to heel instead of lead. Follow the same instructions as in the first part of this blog. When approaching stairs, ask how the person how they wish to proceed, as they will be holding your arm with one hand and the guide dog with the other, making it impossible to grasp a handrail.

Giving Directions To Someone Who is Blind or Visually Impaired
If a person is on their own with a guide dog or white cane, giving complete accurate directions is necessary. While you may be used to pointing or saying “it is over there,” or “go around the next corner,” if you can’t see you have no idea where “there” is or the “next corner.”

Always refer to a specific direction from the perspective of the person you are advising. Your right is their left.
Indicate the approximate distance in addition to the direction.
Give the approximate number of streets to cross to reach the destination. Even if you are off a block or two, it gives the person an idea of when to stop and ask for further instructions if needed.
If possible, provide information about landmarks on the way. Remember that sounds, scents and ground textures can be landmarks. You can hear an escalator, smell the scent of fresh brewed coffee and feel the difference between grass and a sidewalk.

4/16/15

Susan DeRemer, CFRE
Vice President of Development
Discovery Eye Foundation

Selecting Your Best Vision Correction Options

Today technology has evolved to a point where patients either with normal refractive errors such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism and presbyopia or those with ocular diseases that require specialized vision correction options such as those with keratoconus all have spectacular alternatives to maximize their visual performance. With the multitude of choices available, how does an individual make the decision which to take advantage of? Well let’s begin by saying that the input from your eye care professional is critically important. You need to be properly educated not only about the various options that are applicable to your individual situation but about the advantages and disadvantages of these options.

Normal Refractive Error Options

Let’s begin by discussing vision correction options available to those with normal refractive errors. Basically stated, these individuals have the ability to utilize spectacles, contact lenses or if they are appropriate candidates, consider the refractive surgical alternatives.

Glasses
Today spectacle lens technology has evolved to the point where exceptional vision quality can be achieved with lens designs that allow for the selection of almost any frame size or shape. Thin lens technologies have enabled those with high prescription powers to not only see amazingly well, but to wear glasses that remain quite thin and attractive even with some of the most extreme prescription powers. Your eye care professional can discuss the various lens material options that best work for your situation. New high index materials are not only thin but are very light weight. A concern for some however can be the significantly higher costs associated with these lens materials. For those who need multifocals, new digital and free form progressive addition lenses (PALs) have dramatically increased the success rates associated with adaptation to PALs.

Contact Lenses
Contact lens alternatives for those with normal refractive errors have also dramatically developed technologically over the past years. Today virtually every patient with normal refractive error is a candidate to wear contact lenses. Developments such as astigmatic contacts, multifocal contacts, and hybrid (rigid center / soft periphery) contact lens designs along with the introduction and the tremendous growth in the use of single use daily disposable contacts has made one form or another of contact lenses something to consider for almost everyone. Today’s CLs are healthier, more comfortable and provide better vision than ever before. CLs have the advantage of superior peripheral vision, more natural vision “sensation” and obvious advantages for demanding physical activities. With contemporary contact lens materials and designs we have successfully addressed issues that limited many people in the past such as concerns of poor comfort due to dryness, contact lens vision instability and contact lens induced complications associated with over-wear and over-use of lenses. Your eye doctor should always present contact lens options to you regardless if you ask or not. So often patients think that they can’t wear contacts, so it does become the responsibility of your doctor to inform and educate you about CL alternatives.

Combination of Glasses and Contact Lenses
So how do you decide if you should be a contact lens wearer or a glasses wearer? Who said you have to? The two vision correction options are not mutually exclusive; in fact they are quite synergistic. All contact lens wearers should have an excellent pair of glasses to use. Contacts may be more cosmetically acceptable to many, they may be much better for various physical activities such as sports, however there are many times when glasses may be preferred such as at the end of a long day of contact lens wear, first thing in the morning before inserting your CLs, or on those days you just don’t want to bother with your CLs or simply prefer the look of your glasses for some situations. Today even the person who predominantly wears glasses can consider part time contact lens wear. Single use daily disposable (DD) CLs are the perfect option for such an individual. DD CLs are now even available in astigmatism and multifocal designs!

Refractive Surgery
Refractive surgery is also developing and is more effective and safer today than ever before. An experienced and skilled eye doctor is in the best position to consult with you in order to determine if you are an excellent candidate for the various refractive surgical options available. Again, having refractive surgery does not always eliminate your need for glasses or contact lenses. Although that would be the optimal outcome, many patients still use glasses and contact lenses after having refractive surgery. Typically the glasses and contact lenses are far less strong and are used significantly less often than prior to surgery. Some patients need them due to complications of surgery while others need them when outcomes did not perfectly correct vision and of course refractive surgery does not stop eyes from changing over the years, so many patients who had successful refractive surgery may experience vision changes years after surgery that require the use of glasses, contacts or both.

Irregular Refractive Error Options

Specialty Contact Lenses
Next let’s talk about choices in vision correction for those with irregular corneas and other conditions that are termed “medically necessary” vision correction cases. Individuals with irregular corneas such as those with keratoconus or post LASIK or other refractive surgery induced ectasias often require contact lenses that in essence “mask” the irregularity of the cornea. In the past this equated with the fitting of rigid corneal contact lenses, however today many other alternatives can be considered such as the fitting of scleral large diameter gas permeable contacts, hybrid CLs designed for irregular corneas and even combination systems of soft lenses with corneal gas permeable lenses (called “tandem” or “piggyback” CL systems). These CL alternatives provide advantages such as improved comfort, improved eye health response by limiting contact lens to cornea bearing, and improved contact lens positioning and stability which positively impacts visual performance.

Combination of Contact Lenses With Glasses
It should be clearly stated that spectacle lens alternatives still can have a significant role in the treatment of individuals with irregular corneas. Often glasses can be prescribed that provide adequate vision if even for part time and limited applications. While less severe cases may perform quite well with glasses as their primary modality of vision correction. Your doctor may need to modify the power of your glasses prescription in order for you to adapt to wearing glasses, however even a modified prescription power can frequently allow for some degree of visual function and allow for the ability to reduce the number of contact lens wearing hours during the day.

Surgical Procedures
Application of certain surgical and medical procedures such as intra-corneal ring segments (Intacs TM) or corneal collagen cross linking (CXL) for corneal irregularity can often help these patients in various ways and may allow for perhaps a less complex contact lens application or easier adaptation and improved function with glasses. Management of these diseases and conditions is quite complex and requires the expertise of doctors with extensive experience. Your doctor, if appropriately skilled and experienced can provide you with all of the required information and education so that you both can jointly decide on the best vision correction options for you.

In conclusion, patients today have numerous options for their vision correction. These options each have advantages and disadvantages but in most cases can be utilized synergistically. The role that your eye care professional plays in consultation and education of the vision correction alternatives applicable to you cannot be over stated. Vision is a precious gift and you should experience the highest quality of visual performance possible.

2/26/15

S. Barry Eiden, OD, FAAO
Medical Director, North Suburban Vision Consultants, Ltd.
NSCV Blog: www.nsvc.com/blog
President and Founder, International Keratoconus Academy of Eye Care Professionals

February Is Low Vision Awareness Month

Help for People With Vision Loss

Here’s eye-opening news: Currently, 4.2 million Americans ages 40 and older are visually impaired. Of these, 3 million have low vision. By 2030, when the last baby boomers turn 65, the number of Americans who have visual impairments is projected to reach 7.2 million, with 5 million having low vision. For the millions of people who currently live or will live with low vision, the good news is there is help.

But first, what is low vision? Low vision is when even with regular glasses, contact lenses, medicine, or surgery, people have difficulty seeing, which makes everyday tasks difficult to do. Activities that used to be simple like reading the mail, shopping, cooking, and writing can become challenging.

Most people with low vision are age 65 or older. The leading causes of vision loss in older adults are age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, cataract, and glaucoma. Among younger people, vision loss is most often caused by inherited eye conditions, infectious and autoimmune eye diseases, or trauma. For people with low vision, maximizing their remaining sight is key to helping them continue to live safe, productive, and rewarding lives. The first step is to seek help.

“I encourage anyone with low vision to seek guidance about vision rehabilitation from a low vision specialist,” advises Paul A. Sieving, MD, PhD, director of the National Eye Institute (NEI), one of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the federal government’s principal agency for vision research.

What is a low vision specialist? A low vision specialist is an ophthalmologist or optometrist who works with people who have low vision. A low vision specialist can develop a vision rehabilitation plan that identifies strategies and assistive devices appropriate for the person’s particular needs. “A vision rehabilitation plan helps people reach their true visual potential when nothing more can be done from a medical or surgical standpoint,” explains Mark Wilkinson, O.D., a low vision specialist at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and chair of the low vision subcommittee for the National Eye Health Education Program (NEHEP).

Vision rehabilitation can include the following:

Training to use magnifying and adaptive devices
Teaching new daily living skills to remain safe and live independently
Developing strategies to navigate around the home and in public
Providing resources and support

There are also many resources available to help people with low vision. NEI offers a 20-page, large-print booklet, titled What You Should Know About Low Vision, and companion DVD, featuring inspiring stories of people living with low vision. This booklet and DVD, among other resources, are available at
www.nei.nih.gov/lowvision.

With the aging of the population, eye diseases and vision loss have become major public health concerns in the United States. NEI is committed to finding new ways to improve the lives of people living with visual impairment. Aside from making information and resources readily available, NEI has dedicated more than $24 million to research projects on low vision, including learning how the brain adapts to vision loss; strategies to improve vision rehabilitation; and the development of new technologies that help people with low vision to read, shop, and find their way in unfamiliar places. Research like this will help people with low vision to make the most of their remaining vision and maintain their independence and quality of life.

2/17/15

The National Eye Health Education Program (NEHEP) of the National Eye Institute (NEI), a part of NIH, offers a 20-page, large-print booklet, titled What You Should Know About Low Vision, and a series of videos featuring patient stories about living with low vision. These and other resources are available at http://www.nei.nih.gov/lowvision.

Visual Aids and Techniques When Traveling

I was 43 years old when I learned that I had an incurable disease of the retina that would cause permanent vision loss. I was devastated and could only think of how sad my life would be without being able to play basketball, ride my bicycle, travel to new destinations, and to enjoy the finer things in life. Fortunately, all of my preconceived ideas were wrong! I met a group of people with macular degeneration and they told me about all the fun things they did together. They told me about how they went horseback riding, bowled, golfed, rode tandem bicycles, and traveled across the United States together. The purpose of this article is to share with you many helpful tips and strategies to allow you to enjoy yourself when you travel and play outdoors. Here are some visual aids and techniques when traveling.

Sunglasses and Filters
Sunglasses are one of the most helpful visual aids to improve your eye comfort and vision when traveling outdoors. There are many different color filters that are made of various materials to maximize your vision. Often, people purchase sunglasses that are too dark and they do not allow a person to see details most clearly. Amber and yellow filters are very helpful for people with macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy while green and plum lenses are very comfortable for people who are in the direct bright sunlight. Another type of sunglass lens that is very helpful is polarized lenses. These lenses filter light from reflected surfaces, such as the water or a windshield. Thus, a polarized sunglass will be very helpful if you will be traveling on an ocean cruise or traveling in the car on a road trip.

Hats and Visors
Hats and visors are another excellent visual aid to reduce glare. Wearing a hat or visor with a wide brim made of a dark color will reduce glare caused by the bright sidewalk. Many hats and visors are shaped such that they also filter light coming from the sides.

Telescopes
Telescopic glasses are very helpful low vision aids that allow people to identify distant objects very clearly. A telescope consists of two lenses separated by space. They are available in different powers to provide different levels of magnification. The larger the telescope, the higher the magnification. Telescopes are available to be mounted in glasses or they may be held in your hand. By looking through a telescope or telescopic glasses, the world will be magnified, similar to looking through a pair of binoculars. Telescopes are very helpful for sight seeing, reading traffic signs, watching plays, sporting events, and for people watching. Consult with your low vision optometrist for a demonstration of these devices!

Magnifiers
Magnifiers are very helpful tools when traveling. They allow one to read menus, identify your currency, read bus schedules, and to also see the slot machines! Magnifiers are available in various shapes, sizes, and forms. Some are simple lenses that are held in your hand while others are placed in glasses to allow you to use your hands to perform other tasks. I will never forget the first time that I prescribed magnifying glasses to allow my patient to play Black Jack in Las Vegas. He came back from his vacation ad was so happy that he was able to play cards again!

Mobility Cane
A mobility cane is very important to take when you travel because it informs others that you have a vision problem and it allows people to assist you by moving out of the way as you walk. I recall how strongly I resisted the use of my long white cane. I did not feel that I needed it because I still had vision. However, when we walked on the Las Vegas strip, I could not enjoy the sights of the new hotels because I had my head tilted towards the sidewalk so that I could see where to walk. My wife told me, “Why don’t you try using your cane so that you can enjoy the scenery?” I reluctantly agreed and was so excited to be able to lift my head and look around at all the hotels and people. People moved out of our way as we walked and it made me feel as though I was Moses walking through the parted Red Sea!

Smart Phones
Another very helpful tool to use when traveling or performing activities away from your home is the use of the cell phone. Today, there are cell phones called Smart Phones. These phones are essentially a small computer that has the ability to magnify the print on the screen and they are also able to talk to you and understand your voice! I personally use the Apple iPhone 5 and this device is extremely helpful. I can ask it to give me directions to specific areas to walk and visit, or I can ask it where the nearest bank, restaurant, or hotel is. When my phone locates the available options, it says the options aloud. My phone is also helpful because it can take pictures of objects and tell me what they are. When shopping, my phone will scan the bar code and tell me what is in the package and it will also tell me the price. Lastly, my phone has the ability to identify the currency, colors of clothing, and it also can help me to obtain a taxi cab or a bus ride.

All in all, there are many tools and techniques that are available to allow people with low vision or blindness to perform enjoyable activities away from home and to travel. I never thought that I would be able to enjoy all the things that I now do as a person who is totally blind. To learn more about these low vision aids and strategies, contact your low vision agency.

2/5/15

Bill Takeshita, OD, FAAO
Chief of Optometry
Center for the Partially Sighted

Imagination and KC

Imagination is a powerful thing. It can take you to great heights or take you into a downward spiral. I know. It’s done both to me. Thirty years ago I was diagnosed with keratoconus (KC) in both eyes. Then, I wasn’t sure what it was all about and my imagination took over spinning out all kinds of scenarios. Was I going to go totally blind? Would I be able to continue working? Would I still be able to drive? Was I scared then? Yes!

Imagination and KC
Over the years I’ve been through many of the ups and downs KC’ers face – uncomfortable lenses, vision changes, cornea abrasions, the piggyback system and pushing the limits of lens wear-time. The KC in my left eye deteriorated and a cornea transplant was the only option left. In the early 80s, my surgeon performed the transplant while listening to tracks from Michael Jackson’s album, Thriller. The transplant gave me the vision I needed stay in the workforce. I travelled for business, spent hours in front of a computer, belonged to a bowling league, walked on a glacier, climbed a fraction of the Great Wall, shed inhibitions in an acting class, answered crisis hotline calls, took “artsy” out-of-focus photos and gazed into the innocent, perfect eyes of my grandsons.

Everything wasn’t all rosy. There were highs and lows throughout those years because my other eye with KC kept going downhill before it stabilized. I still encountered all those difficulties KC contact lens wearers face when lenses are critical to functioning. But, I never let KC take over my life. Sometimes after I tried something new, I had to concede that vision challenges lessened the enjoyment and I labeled it “not for me” and moved on to something else.

I’m retired now and am sixty-nine. Now, my transplant cornea has filamentary keratitis and chronic dry eye so wearing a RGP lens is out. I’m at 20/200 in that eye but am still thankful for the good vision years. My other eye fluctuates between 20/50-60 with a RGP lens but comfortable wear-time is down to 3-4 hrs. Old anxieties have resurfaced. I live alone. Is driving my golf cart over? What am I going to do? “Explore your options,” my inner voiced commanded. So, I tackled the worst-case scenario first – what if I can’t wear any kind of lenses even scleral? I researched tools and services available to those with all kinds of vision problems. I visited the Southeastern Guide Dog Campus in Palmetto, FL in the US and learned all about Seeing Eye guide dogs. They’re amazing! My doctor started conversations about scleral lenses but that got put on hold.

Why? I was in the middle of a huge project. My imagination was taking me to great heights in this project. I was at the critical stages of writing a novel. It required my full attention. Fitting sessions and lens adjustment time would derail my momentum or even force me to take a detour off my route to my destination of having my novel catalogued in Books in Print. I didn’t need high functional vision to imagine scenes and characters. What I did need was a soft contact to act as a bandage to alleviate the pain of filamentary keratitis in my left eye. The soft lens worked! I published Juror 1389 – Dorsie Raines Renninger! Did vision challenges hinder me? Yes, at times. But, I pushed on and worked with what vision I had. I adapted – I bumped up MS Word font size way beyond 200%. I set an alarm clock to signal a stop after two hours of screen time. I removed my RGP lens and took eye-soothing breaks. I used various colors of paper for my research subjects so I could find notes easily. Thera® Tears were constant buddies. And, I asked for help! I formed a 1389 project team with good vision. They read. They highlighted mistakes to correct. I’m 100% certain any reader of Juror 1389 would never guess the author had vision challenges. Why would they? It’s of no importance to them. They’re only interested in what my imagination produced – a good story, a good read.

My message to all KCers is this – KC is a life altering condition not a life threatening condition. Don’t let keratoconus threaten your life or how you live it. Make these two words your mantra – Accept and Adapt. Make peace with what vision you have or will have. Accept it. Move on. Move towards being the best you can be in spite how out-of-focus the world looks to you. Life is not perfectly focused for anyone! Adapt – seek out tools and invent ways to change how you do things. Discover “what works” for you. Learn to ask for help. And remember, imagination is powerful. It has crisp, clear vision. It’s always there. Use it to visualize anything you want or what kind of life you want to live.

1/22/15

Gerry Trickle
Author, web content and greeting card verse writer
She is now working on her next novel – learn more at: www.gttrickle.com

Spotlight Text – A New Way to Read

For People With Low Vision There Is Spotlight Text – A New Way To Read

Spotlight Text is a new e-reading app specifically designed to address the needs of patients with eye disorders. Dr. Howard J. Kaplan, a retina surgeon in the Hudson Valley, started developing the app five years ago. Dr. Kaplan states, “When the first Amazon Kindle came out, a light bulb went off. If books are now digital, you can make the text of the book adapt to the reader instead of forcing the reader to adapt to the text. My patients were extremely frustrated with low vision devices such as desktop readers. Most found them very difficult to use and affordable.” Working with low vision experts at the Lighthouse Guild International, various text presentation methods were evaluated. “The app is based on real visual science and was built with the input of the top low vision specialists in the country, “ says Dr. Kaplan.

The greatest difficulty in creating the app proved to be getting access to e-books. Initially Dr. Kaplan approached the major e-content providers such as Amazon, Google, and Barnes & Noble. All of them considered the low vision market too small to address. During the 5 years, Bookshare, a Silicon Valley nonprofit, began to expand exponentially. Bookshare is dedicated to creating an accessible library for the print disabled.

How Spotlight Text Works, and What Makes it Different
The app is seamlessly tied into the e-book library of Bookshare. The library currently has 300,000+ titles including all current and recent NY Times bestsellers. It has a very extensive collection of textbooks for K-12 children. E-book downloads are free and unlimited for children, and Vets. There is a minimal joining/maintenance fee for adults. All patients that have any visual deficit that prevents them reading standard print are eligible to join. A physician, optometrist, therapist, or even librarian has to certify a patient by checking a single box on the form and signing their name. Bookshare then does the rest by contacting the patient and giving them an account. Bookshare functions due to an exception in US copyright law that allows the free distribution of copyrighted material in formats that are unique for patients with visual disabilities. The books are coded in DAISY, which is a sound file format. The App takes these files and renders them back to written text.

The user interface is designed such that an 80-year-old technophobe or a five-year-old child can easily use it (Apple-like minimalism). The app also synchronizes with Bluetooth Braille readers that convert the text to Braille. It can be connected to the HDMI port of any TV for unlimited screen size (hardwire or wireless through Apple TV). As you will see when you demo the app, text is now dynamic: in both teleprompter and marquee modes the text will move so that ocular movements are minimized. Marquee mode was specifically designed and tested to work for end-stage Retinitis Pigmentosa patients and any patient with only a remaining very narrow central visual field. Using VoiceOver all books are now audible books.

Social Entrepreneurship
Special iTunes links are created for vision nonprofits. If a patient clicks on those links and purchases the Spotlight Text App, 50% of sales profits are donated to the organization, including the Discovery Eye Foundation or the American Academy of Ophthalmology Foundation. Prior to being placed on the AAO’s website the app was evaluated by its Low Vision Rehabilitation Committee. It is the only app that the American Academy of Ophthalmology has ever endorsed.

The Future
Dr. Kaplan hopes to return to the major providers of e-content and persuade them that low vision and blind users are a viable market for them.

“I believe universal accessibility is achievable, but it will take a coordinated and combined effort. Reading is such a vital part of all our lives, with e-books, everyone should be able to enjoy a good book.”

Howard J. Kaplan, MD
Retina Surgeon
Hudson Retina

1/15/15

Hadley’s Online Education for the Blind and Visually Impaired

12/4/14

The Hadley School for the Blind (www.hadley.edu) is the world’s largest educator of people who are blind or visually impaired as well as the world’s largest Braille educator. The school’s curriculum has always been delivered completely through online education, meaning students can study from anywhere at any time. Hadley serves nearly 10,000 students in all 50 states and approximately 100 countries. Hadley serves adult students, age 14 and over. Our mission is to promote independent living through lifelong, distance education programs for individuals who are blind or visually impaired, their families and blindness service providers.

Hadley courses are tuition-free for people who are blind or visually impaired and their family members; there is modest tuition for professionals. Students study at their own pace and receive personalized, one-on-one instruction from their instructor by phone, email, virtual “office hours” or mail.

Students can take courses in four formats: large print, Braille, audio or online. Since we began offering courses in an online format in 2002 as part of our eHadley initiative, more than 13,000 students have completed one or more online courses. 89 of our approximately 100 courses are offered in an online format, and 20 new online courses were introduced in 2014. Most of our online courses also are now accessible on mobile devices, so that students can literally study on the go if they choose.

If you’re not familiar with blindness, you may be asking yourself how a blind person can take courses online. The answer is through adaptive technology, such as screen magnifiers or screen readers. A screen reader is a software application that converts text on a screen to speech. One of the most popular is called JAWS. If a student doesn’t know how to use a screen reader, Hadley has a series of courses to teach them how to use this technology!

While many students come to us to learn to read and write Braille, we offer much more than just Braille education. In addition to Braille, some of our most popular areas of study include access technology, independent living skills, employment skills and recreation. These courses fall within Hadley’s Adult Continuing Education Program, which represents the largest number of students at Hadley. Some examples of ACE courses include:

Independent Living Series: This series of two-lesson courses focuses on a variety of topics central to the tasks of daily living. When individuals lose their sight, it can be overwhelming. They must relearn key daily living skills, such as cooking, dressing themselves and getting around. These courses give our students the tools they need to retain their independence and lead productive lives. The individual course topics include: orientation and mobility basics; clothing care and dressing confidently; socializing and dining; and cooking.

Self-Esteem and Adjusting with Blindness: Whether a student was born visually impaired or lost vision later in life, this course will help them understand the adjustment to life’s demands. Maintaining self-esteem with the changes and adaptations that come with blindness are discussed in-depth and illustrated with quotes from many blind persons.

Human Eye 1 and 2: These courses explain the parts of the human eye, how it works and how corrective lenses work. They enable the student to describe the basic anatomy, routine examination procedures and some common conditions of the human eye. Hadley also offers courses on some of the specific conditions that can lead to vision impairment, including: macular degeneration, diabetes and glaucoma. These courses are designed to help students living with these conditions to better understand them and how to manage them.

Developing Your Technology Toolkit: Technology plays a significant role in how people interact with each other, and most will likely encounter some aspect of technology in their everyday life. This course presents a variety of prominent desktop and mobile solutions. It also discusses how adaptive technology solutions provide access to mainstream hardware and software. In addition, it focuses on proprietary, adaptive technology products designed to be used specifically by persons who are visually impaired.

Enjoying Bird Songs: Listening to birdsongs helps people reduce stress, improve cognition and memory, interact with nature and even have spiritual experiences. This course guides students through the many bird songs presented in Hadley student John Neville’s audio CD set Beginner’s Guide to Bird Songs of North America. This course helps students become able to appreciate nature and birdsongs, as well as reflect on their experiences with birdsong.

Also part of the ACE program is the Forsythe Center for Employment and Entrepreneurship (FCE), designed to address the 70 – 80% un- and underemployment rate among people who are blind or visually impaired. The FCE is not an academic, college-level business program, but instead was designed to provide the requisite computer training; relevant social security, tax, accounting, legal, marketing, management and communications information; and content specific to the needs and concerns of visually impaired individuals who want to launch and grown their own businesses. All FCE courses are online, and many are just one-lesson modules, which makes learning quick and easy. Some examples of modules include: The Marketing Plan, The Business Plan, Forms of Ownership and Networking Skills.

Since the 1930s, The Hadley School for the Blind also has offered a nationally-recognized, accredited High School Program, available to students with visual impairments age 14 and up who live in the United States. Students may transfer credits from courses taken at Hadley to their high school to graduate locally. Students may also earn their high school diploma directly through Hadley. Frustration with local schools not offering quality vision services or accessible formats, difficulties passing the state-required exit exam for graduation or inability to travel long distances have prevented many of our students from earning their diploma in the past, so the Hadley High School Program is a much-needed “second chance.”

Courses are supplemented by Seminars@Hadley, free 60 to 90-minute webinars that are available to the public. These seminars are designed to bring together our blind and visually impaired students from around the world to discuss various topics in a virtual conference room with a panel, moderator and guest speakers. Participants listen to the seminar from their computer and post questions electronically. They also ask questions and/or make comments using a microphone. Seminar topics are timely, practical and determined by what our students tell us they need. Some of our most popular seminars include: Learning to Put the “You” in YouTube, Simplifying Internet Searching and Crafting with Vision Loss. Some seminars are approved for Continuing Education Credits (CEUs).

Hadley also offer a series of instructional videos on YouTube called iFocus (www.youtube.com/hadleyschool). These videos explain how to use the vision accessibility features on iDevices (Apple products such as the iPhone and iPad). Each video focuses on a specific task on iDevices, such as sending a text message or creating a calendar event . There are now 25 videos in the series, and they have been viewed nearly 10,000 times!

For more information about Hadley or to enroll, visit our website at www.hadley.edu, call our Student Services Department at 800-526-9909 or send an email to student_services@hadley.edu.

Kate Streit
Media and Marketing Specialist
The Hadley School for the Blind

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