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As per the Person with Disability Act (PDA) 1995, a person with low vision is one with impairment of visual function after treatment with regular and standard refractive correction but who is capable of using vision for planning and execution of daily tasks with appropriate assistive products. Low vision aids (LVA) are devices intended to improve visual performance in patients with low vision. These devices improve academic, social, and skilled interaction and help uplift the daily experience. The various functional effects of low vision include loss of central vision, loss of peripheral vision, and cloudy media. The main goals of low vision management include education, increasing functionality, and providing a link to the community and social services. The major strategies for improving low vision include using appropriate technology, cost-effective interventions, orientation for daily living activities, focusing on the target groups, and utilizing proper educational and vocational adaptation. LVA can be optical devices like magnifiers or telescopes and non-optical devices like lamps, stands, and large prints. This activity deals with the classification, principle, issues of concern, and clinical significance of LVA. Objectives: Describe the functions of low vision aids. Summarize the clinical significance of low vision aids. Identify the concerns of low vision aids. Explain the classification of low vision aids. Access free multiple choice questions on this topic.

Low vision aids (LVA) or low vision assistive products (LVAPs) are devices that aid people with low vision and allow them to use their residual vision for better living.[1] LVAP work by making the objects appear bigger, brighter, and blacker or more closely, with improved contrast.[2] These can be broadly divided into optical or non-optical. According to the World Health Organization, there are at least 2.2 billion people globally with visual impairment.[3] Out of these, at least 1 billion could have been prevented from vision impairment with timely intervention. Among these 1 billion, uncorrected refractive errors are responsible for most cases, accounting for 88.4 million.[4] Cataracts that can be reversed with a minor surgery comprised another 94 million, glaucoma 7.7 million, corneal opacity 4.2 million, diabetic retinopathy 3.9 million, trachoma 2 million, and uncorrected presbyopia 826 million.[5] World health organization (WHO)  international classification of diseases (ICD-10) defines a person with low vision as one with visual acuity between 6/18-3/60 in the good eye and field of vision between 20 and 30 degrees.[6] The WHO working definition of LVA (Bangkok, 1992) defines a person with low vision as one who has a visual impairment or visual functional impairment even after treatment of the ocular pathology and or refractive error correction with a vision of less than 20/60 to a perception of light or a visual field of fewer than 10 degrees from the point of fixation.[7] Vision Impairment as Per the International Classification of Diseases-11 (ICD-11) {2018} Table Distance vision impairment Mild WHO Classification of Low Vision Table S. No Grading Chart Depicting Visual Disability Parameters Table S. No Grading

Low vision assistive products are critical in patients' visual rehabilitation and upliftment. Using assistive technology to the best potential is a viable and achievable option that will reduce the dependency of visually handicapped and visually impaired patients.[35] It is imperative to understand the patient's ocular pathology, the need for LVA products, the type of LVA needed, and the barriers to utilizing these products. The acceptance rate of these products is low in general. Improving the utilization of these products will reduce the burden of blindness. A multidisciplinary approach will help target the low vision patient group and provide quality treatment necessary for visual rehabilitation.[36]

The nursing team, the allied health staff, and the interprofessional team play a key role in patient evaluation, counseling, and guidance. The nursing and allied health staff trained in handling LVA play a vital role in the visual rehabilitation of these patients. The patients should be taught how to use the device for the best effective outcome. In addition, counseling of the family members plays a crucial role in assisting these patients. The nursing staff also ensures patient follow-up and satisfaction post visual rehabilitation.[36]

The nursing team, the allied health staff, and the interprofessional team help monitor the application of these devices to the patients. They also help ascertain the working vision and decide the type of device needed per the indication. The patients should have a healthy optic nerve and visual cortex to utilize the LVA effectively. The allied health staff also helps determine these patients' functional optic nerve and higher mental function.[37]