14 Million in U.S. are Visually Impaired

Most People Who Are Visually Impaired Could See Better If
They Had the Proper Eyeglasses or Contact Lenses

A National Institutes of Health (NIH) study has found that although
94 percent of Americans aged 12 and older have good vision, the
remaining six percent, or 14 million, are visually impaired. Of these,
more than 11 million have uncorrected visual impairment, such as
nearsightedness. They need eyeglasses or contact lenses to
improve their vision. Teenagers, people with diabetes, Hispanics,
and people who are economically disadvantaged have higher rates
of visual impairment and can most benefit from corrective lenses.
This study is published in the May 10, 2006 issue of the Journal of
the American Medical Association.

Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D., director of the NIH, said, “This is the first
national survey on vision since the mid-1970s, and it confirms that
uncorrected visual impairment is a major public health problem. The
good news is that we now have information on the extent of visual
impairment in the United States that will be available to policymakers
as they seek to address health care issues at the local, state, and
national levels.”

This study, designed and supported by the National Eye Institute
(NEI) of the NIH, was part of the National Health and Nutrition
Examination Survey, an ongoing survey conducted by the National
Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. More than 15,000 people participated in the survey from
1999 to 2002. They were interviewed in their homes and were invited
to undergo a comprehensive health examination in a mobile
examination center (MEC). More than 14,000 reported to a MEC, and
more than 13,000 completed visual acuity tests.

Paul A. Sieving, M.D., Ph.D., director of vision research at NIH, said,
“This study found that most people who have a visual impairment
could achieve good vision with proper eyeglasses or contact
lenses. So, if you have trouble seeing, you should get your eyes
examined as soon as possible. It may be that corrective lenses will
improve your vision. But, if you do have an eye disease, the sooner
it is found, the more likely it is that treatment can help preserve your
vision.”

The study authors made the following recommendations:

Health care professionals should talk to their patients about the
importance of eye health and encourage them to participate in
routine vision screenings and eye examinations.
People who already wear eyeglasses or contact lenses should
return to their eye care professional for periodic eye examinations.
Efforts to increase public awareness about the importance of
routine eye examinations should be undertaken.
Vision screening opportunities for the public should be expanded.
Percent of people with visual impairment that CAN be corrected with
glasses/contact lenses
Race/Ethnicity
Hispanic 88.2%
Black 83.7%
White 83.6%
Other 88.6%

Age (years)
12-19 years 93.1%
20-39 years 90.0%
40-59 years 92.4%
60+ years 59.5%

Income
Below poverty level 84.1%
At or near poverty level 80.1%
Over (two times) poverty level 88.7%

Mary Frances Cotch, Ph.D., chief of the NEI’s epidemiology branch
and one of the study authors, concluded, “Providing corrective
lenses to people who need them is an important public health issue
with implications for safety and quality of life.”

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The National Eye Institute (NEI) is part of the National Institutes of
Health (NIH) and is the Federal government's lead agency for vision
research that leads to sight-saving treatments and plays a key role
in reducing visual impairment and blindness. For more information,
visit the NEI Website at http://www.nei.nih.gov.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) — The Nation's Medical
Research Agency — includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a
component of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. It
is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic,
clinical, and translational medical research, and it investigates the
causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases.
For more information about NIH and its programs, visit http://www.
nih.gov.
This page was last modified in May 2006