As folks age, the share reporting important imaginative and prescient loss will increase. Researchers discovered that 6.3% of adults aged 65 to 74 reported imaginative and prescient loss, with this quantity rising to 7.4% for adults aged 75 to 79 and 9.8% for adults 80 or older.
Imaginative and prescient loss, together with central imaginative and prescient loss, which impacts the flexibility to see element within the heart of your imaginative and prescient, profoundly impacts the standard of life for older adults, making it difficult to carry out on a regular basis duties and navigate new environments. Imaginative and prescient loss additionally will increase the chance of falls and can lead to emotions of social isolation.
In the present day, a variety of assistive applied sciences can be found to deal with these challenges, rising independence, bettering security and boosting social connection for folks with imaginative and prescient loss.
Situations that trigger central imaginative and prescient loss
Eye circumstances equivalent to age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy are two of the main causes of imaginative and prescient loss in seniors.
AMD is a situation that impacts the world of the attention answerable for sharp, central imaginative and prescient. This progressive illness primarily begins later in life inflicting central imaginative and prescient loss and “fuzziness.” Affecting roughly 20 million people in the USA, AMD is anticipated to have an effect on roughly 288 million folks worldwide by 2040.
Diabetic retinopathy is a complication of diabetes that progressively damages the blood vessels and tissues within the retina, which may finally lead to central imaginative and prescient loss. It impacts virtually one-third of adults aged 40 or extra years who’ve diabetes.
Assistive know-how use
As central imaginative and prescient loss more and more impacts older adults, know-how aimed toward bettering the standard of life for older adults is continuous to advance. Though a variety of progressive assistive applied sciences is out there, nonetheless, solely a small share of older adults with low imaginative and prescient actively use them. For instance, a examine of the low-vision examination data of individuals aged greater than 55 from the UCLA Imaginative and prescient Rehabilitation Heart discovered that 90% of individuals with low imaginative and prescient had a smartphone, but solely 6% used visible assistive apps.
Low utilization of assistive applied sciences amongst older adults is attributed largely to a lack of know-how. Employees at senior communities and assisted dwelling communities can increase using assistive applied sciences by rising consciousness and creating alternatives to coach seniors in regards to the choices accessible that may assist enhance their independence and high quality of life.
Smartphone apps
With roughly 76% of US adults 65 and older proudly owning a smartphone, there’s a nice alternative for seniors with imaginative and prescient loss to make use of downloadable accessibility apps.
Smartphone apps designed to assist older adults with central imaginative and prescient loss and different visible impairments embrace apps equivalent to TapTapSee that use picture recognition know-how to establish objects in smartphone photos and movies; Seeing AI, which may narrate what’s round you; GPS apps equivalent to BlindSquare present turn-by-turn navigation; and lots of extra.
Wearables
As computing, digicam and battery know-how turn out to be smaller and simpler, wearable assistive know-how for older adults with low imaginative and prescient has turn out to be a extra comfy actuality.
In the present day, light-weight low-vision gadgets equivalent to eSight Go are designed to deal with the precise wants and navigational challenges confronted by people with central imaginative and prescient loss.
Geared up with superior digicam and show know-how, wearable gadgets can ship high-resolution imagery in actual time, permitting customers to synthesize pictures and see with readability. These gadgets are additional enhanced with magnification capabilities and different customizable settings to swimsuit distinctive wants. This know-how permits older adults with central imaginative and prescient loss to acknowledge faces, interact in actions equivalent to studying, and navigate environment extra confidently.
Textual content-to-speech software program
Textual content-to-speech software program equivalent to LyriQ converts written textual content into spoken phrases, serving to older adults with visible impairments entry extra info. The AI powering lots of these applied sciences delivers quick and correct studying capabilities which permit customers to extra simply scan and hearken to a variety of textual content codecs, from printed books to digital paperwork.
Assistive applied sciences can considerably enhance the standard of life for older adults with central imaginative and prescient loss, selling higher independence whereas enabling them to maneuver round extra safely, and bettering their general behavioral well being. Senior dwelling communities have a chance to help residents by providing group applications and workshops that assist them concentrate on, find out about and successfully use assistive applied sciences that may enhance residents’ on a regular basis lives.
Roland Mattern is director of gross sales for eSight at Gentex Company.
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The opinions expressed in every McKnight’s Senior Residing market column are these of the writer and usually are not essentially these of McKnight’s Senior Residing.
