April 26, 2002

UM Kellogg Eye Center offers seminar on living with limited vision

Ann Arbor—What resources are available to people with limited eyesight? Specialists in low vision from the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center will describe how people with low vision can maintain independent lives at a seminar on May 9, 7:00-8:30 p.m., at the Kellogg Eye Center, 1000 Wall Street, Ann Arbor. The seminar, "Seeing the Future with Low Vision," is free and open to the public. Parking is also free.

Donna Wicker, OD, and Helios Leung, OD, PhD, will explain how they diagnose and treat eye conditions that lead to low vision. Cheryl Terpening, occupational therapist, will describe techniques for reading, modifications for the home, and other tips for daily living with limited vision. The Kellogg specialists will also demonstrate optical devices, from special magnifiers to large print computer monitors, that are useful for reading and watching television.

Although low vision often occurs with age, is not the inevitable result of aging. It can occur as a result of injury or from eye diseases, such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, and diabetes. Low vision is defined as a level of vision that is 20/70 or worse and cannot be fully corrected with conventional glasses. By contrast, 20/20 is considered "perfect" vision; and a person with 20/200 vision is legally blind.

For more information about this program or the low vision services at the U-M Kellogg Eye Center, please call 734-763-1415

Contact: Betsy Nisbet, 734.647.5586, bsnisbet@umich.edu.