Gov. Strickland proclaims April as Aging Eyes Month

“Vision impairment is one of the most feared disabilities, and the leading causes of vision impairment and blindness are primarily age-related eye disease,” Strickland said. “Half of all blindness can be prevented, but the number of Ohioans who suffer vision loss continues to increase.”

Age-related eye disease includes age-related macular degeneration, cataract, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma. Approximately 1.4 million Ohioans are affected, and that number is expected to nearly double to 2.5 million by 2030. Most of these conditions do not exhibit any initial symptoms before vision loss occurs. In most cases, vision lost cannot be recovered.

“Many seniors are not aware that most geriatric eye diseases slowly steal vision, without any noticeable early symptoms,” said Dr. Robert Newcomb, co-chair of Ohio’s Aging Eye Public Private Partnership and professor of clinical optometry at The Ohio State University College of Optometry. “Regular eye exams with pupil dilation are important even if you have already passed your Ohio driver’s license vision screening test and have not experienced any blurring, redness or pain. Often, vision lost cannot be restored; so the sooner a vision problem is diagnosed, the more successful its treatment is.”

Ohio’s Aging Eye Public Private Partnership, supported by the Ohio Department of Aging, is a collaboration of state agencies and boards, legislators, industry associations and health and vision experts, that strives to shape the state’s vision care public policy, increase access to vision care services and promote education and research.

Visit www.preventblindness.org/Ohio/Agingeye/ for more information about the Aging Eye Public Private Partnership, eye diseases, Medicare benefits, the prevalence of vision problems in Ohio and a directory of Ohio vision resources.
Facts about age-related eye disease in Ohio:
• Blindness” does not necessarily mean the complete loss of vision with no remaining perception of light. In fact, this ultimate form of complete blindness is rare.
• Vision impairment is defined as having 20/40 or worse vision in the better eye even with eyeglasses.
• “Legal blindness,” used to determine eligibility for certain disability benefits from the federal government, is typically defined as visual acuity worse than or equal to 20/200 or a visual field extent of less than 20 degrees in diameter.
• More than 1.3 million Ohioans over age 40 have myopia, or nearsightedness, which causes them to see near objects clearly, while distant ones are blurred.
• More than 71,000 Ohioans over age 50 suffer from age-related macular degeneration, or AMD, which creates a loss of sharp, central vision and currently has no treatment.
• Approximately 900,000 Ohioans over age 40 have cataracts, which involve a clouding of the eye’s naturally clear lens.
• About 92,000 Ohioans over age 40 have glaucoma, which causes the loss of peripheral or side vision.
More than 216,000 Ohioans over age 18 have diabetic retinopathy, which involves abnormal growth of blood vessels in the back of the eye that can leak.
• An eye exam with pupil dilation is the best defense against undetected eye disease.