Background

Visual impairment and eye conditions

In Germany, a person may be registered as visually impaired if their visual acuity in their better eye when corrected is 0.3 (30%) or lower. Think about it this way: a person with a visual acuity of 0.3 is unable to recognise an object that a normally sighted person can recognise at a distance of one metre until it is just 30 cm away.

A person is regarded as severely visually impaired if their visual acuity in their better eye when corrected is 0.05 or lower. They see 5% or less of what a person with normal eyesight sees.

And not all ‘blind’ people are completely blind. If their visual acuity when corrected is 0.02 (2%) or lower or they have better eyesight but their field of vision is severely restricted, they are also considered legally blind.

Click on the links below for basic information on the most common eye conditions.

This section describes the main effects of these eye conditions.

Every eye condition has a set of typical symptoms, but these symptoms can have very different effects on different people. This may depend on how advanced the condition is, for example, or whether it presents in combination with one or more other conditions. In addition, a person’s actual sight will vary according to the time of day, light conditions and their physical and mental state as well as other factors. As a result, a visually impaired person may be able to read a given text on one day but not on the next. Finally, coping strategies such as a persons’ ability to use magnifying visual aids effectively can also play a significant role.

In simple terms, the principal symptoms of an eye condition can be divided into the following groups.

Loss of central vision

This is what a person with macular degeneration might typically see:

Over time, the loss of central vision may spread over a wider area and straight lines and letters may appear distorted. Sufferers may completely lose their ability to read, while still being able to orient themselves spatially.

Loss of peripheral vision

This is a typical symptom of glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy. Reading is not generally impacted in the early stages of the condition because central vision is retained. As the condition develops, however, central vision may also be affected. Glaucoma can also affect night vision, while diabetic retinopathy may impair colour vision. Advanced loss of peripheral vision is also known as tunnel vision.

This is what a person with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) might typically see:

Other possible symptoms include:
failing eyesight in dim light and darkness, failing adaptation, failing colour and contrast vision, increasing glare sensitivity.

Blurring and poor contrast

This is what a person with cataracts might typically see:

Symptoms include:
blurred vision, faded colours, glare sensitivity, loss of visual acuity, decreasing adaptability to changing light conditions.

Severe short-sightedness (pathological myopia) is another form of defective vision. Short-sighted see near objects clearly, while objects farther away appear blurred.

Further information:
‘So sehe ich’ – Five videos showing how the visually impaired see the world
Information on seven common eye conditions from the German Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted (DBSV)