When Ivan Fitzrandolph heard that his grandson Casey would be speedskating in the 2002 Winter Olympics, the news was bittersweet. Fitzrandolph, 81, a retired teacher from Milton, Wis., suffers from macular degeneration - a progressive deterioration of the macula of the retina and choroid of the eye that eventually causes blindness, a condition that renders him legally blind. "Even if I was sitting right next to the ice," he says, "I wouldn't have been able to see Casey skate by."

Just before the Olympics, his family gave him the ultimate gift: sight. It came in the form of a pair of goggles called the Jordy. Jordy is a sophisticated piece of technology that views the world through a camcorder lens, then enhances and displays the images on two tiny screens in front of the wearer's eyes. When his grandson skated past the finish line, Fitzrandolph didn't miss a moment. "I was able to see Casey get the gold medal. It was a great experience."

Innovations, such as the Jordy, are changing the lives of the estimated 18 million Americans who suffer from impaired vision, helping them create a new vision for themselves. Some of those have been blind since birth. Some have lost their vision over time. Others, such as Fitzrandolph, endure what is called "low vision", a state of near-blindness. Besides Macular Degeneration, "low vision" can include people suffering from Diabetic Retinopathy, Cataracts, and Glaucoma, among other diseases. Curtis Chong, president of the computer-science division of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), who was born blind himself, says these devices "help people realize that blindness isn't as debilitating as they think it is."

Computers serve as an important conduit for the exchange of news and ideas. Until recently few visually impaired people could surf the web or read an e-mail. An important tool is a "screen-reader" - a program that transforms Web pages and e-mails into speech. There is a talking PDA that can be worn around the neck. Scientists at Scotland's University of Glasgow recently announced a talking computer mouse. It combines vibrations and sound cues to convey information.

Some of the more popular computer aids include screen magnification programs like Zoom Text or Magic which enlarge the text and images on the monitor (merlin graphic). Programs like Jaws convert the text and icons to speech so someone could use the computer without needing to see the monitor. There are special keyboards, monitor magnifiers, speech to text programs and other aids that make computers more 'low vision' friendly.

Making a computer easier may even cost little or nothing. Many software programs, including Windows and Office, allow text to be enlarged and to use high contrast color schemes. Bump dots can be placed on the control, alt, and delete keys to help find them as well as on the 'f' and 'j' keys to help someone place their hands properly for keyboarding.

Norman Gardner, professor of finance at Utah Valley State College in Orem, Utah, uses the NFB Newsline. Newsline is a telephone service that allows people to search through and hear articles from the Wall Street Journal and 89 other publications. "Now, when I talk with my colleagues," says Gardner, "I'm the first person with something to say."

A conundrum of the digital age, says Chong, is that as technology becomes smarter for the sighted world, it becomes harder for the blind to use. Laundromats that used coin-operated machines, accessible by the visually impaired, are changing to digital displays that a blind person cannot see. Talking ATM's are being used by banks around the country, including Citibank, Bank of America and Wells Fargo. The blind don't have to memorize the sequence of buttons to push.

The NFB, working with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, debuted a Tactical Graphics Display (TGD). It allows the visually impaired to literally feel an image. Expected to be commercially available within two years, the device consists of 3600 pins that adjust to convey the impression of an electronically scanned image. A blind grandmother can receive a digital picture of her grandchild and, using a TGD, run her fingers over the pin bed to feel a tactile rendering of the child's face. "A picture is truly worth 1000 words," says John Roberts, the lead researcher at the National Institute.

Chong is already discussing the next innovation. It might be a handheld reading device that can be passed over a page and convert the text into speech. "My hope is that, in the next five to ten years, technology will focus on ease-of-use and reducing the learning curve for blind people," he says.

David Kushner, Parade Magazine, 9/7/2003, pg 6, 8
http://www.enhancedvision.com/jordy.php
http://www.lowvisioninfo.org/eyecause.htm

Your child's pediatrician routinely checks your child's eyes. The school nurse might have them look at an eye chart. Is this enough to detect most eye disorders?

Probably not, according to the Vision Council of America and the American Optometric Association.

As many as 1 in 7 children need vision correction to see well. Of more concern is the 3.4% of children with a lazy eye and the 2.3% who have a crossed or wandering eye because these conditions may not be detected in general screenings and can cause permanent vision loss.

A comprehensive eye exam is recommended by the VCA for children. Done by a trained eye professional, a comprehensive exam looks not only at how well the child can read an eye chart, but looks at the health of the eye and how well the eyes work as a team.

Only 14% of children under 6 had such an exam in the past year reports the AOA. Slightly less than 1/3 of children between 6 and 16 have had a comprehensive eye exam in the past year. "Parents may mistakenly believe that if their child has trouble seeing, they'll tell them about the problem. But most kids don't realize that they have a problem. To them, the way they see is normal," says optometrist Joel Zaba, a spokesman for the VCA.

If your child avoids close work or seems to have a short attention span when doing close work, such as reading or working on the computer may be a sign that there's a problem with your child's vision. "If you feel like your child is a lot brighter than school performance indicates, have your child's eyes screened," says Zaba. He points out that 80% of the learning a child does in school is through visual input.

Dr. Robert Cykiert, an ophthalmologist at New York University Medical Center, says there are other signs that your child may have vision problems. If you child is bumping into things a lot, or if you see that one eye doesn't quite follow the other as it should, it's time to get your child evaluated by a professional.

He recommends starting routine professional eye exams around age 5, or just before your child starts school. He also suggests finding a doctor that has no economic interest in selling glasses to you or your child. And, if someone says your child needs 'visual training', you should get a second opinion. If serious eye problems, such as glaucoma or an eye turn, run in your family, you should begin having professional eye exams starting as early as 6 months of age.

http://preventdisease.com/news/articles/children_need_vision_correction_checkups.shtml