Crystal Eyecare offers low-vision services and products.

Low vision is defined as an uncorrectable (no lens, surgery or medicine can correct it) reduced vision (anything worse than 20/20) (for trivia purposes, Europe uses 6/6 because they use the metric system: 20 feet is ~6 meters). You may have heard the term legally blind. This is when your vision is only best correctable to 20/200 or worse. Low vision can mean a reduced quality of life including difficulty with driving, applying make-up and other day-to-day activities. The reasons for reduced vision can vary, but are mainly attributed to compromised retinal health and cataracts. The retina is the light-sensitive tissue in the back of the eye. Retinal conditions such as macular degeneration, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy are common causes of reduced vision. In many cases, an Amsler grid will be given to you to monitor changes in your vision.

 

Introducing Vision Buddy

 

One of the most advanced low vision devices we have had the pleasure to test has been the Vision Buddy. Vision Buddy looks like a virtual reality headset. It has the ability to cast (display tv inside the headset wirelessly) to the device. When looking through the device it looks like a movie theater screen in which you can zoom in and out allowing you to see better. It features a text to speech mode in which one can highlight text and the unit will read the selection aloud to you. Vision Buddy can zoom in and out of actual imagery to help see details you would otherwise miss.

Telescopes and Magnifiers

Crystal Eyecare can help assess and recommend the best course of action to best suit your lifestyle and visual goals, improving your quality of life. In some cases, simple suggestions can go a long way to improve your day-to-day experiences. In other cases, low vision devices such as specificity magnifiers, telescopic lenses or video magnifiers/displays can be used to allow for improved vision and mobility in daily life.