There is a lot of stuff available to help combat low vision problems. I’ll list what I am using. Veterans can contact the Low Vision Department of their local VA and be provided with the video magnifiers noted below:

Cataract Sunglasses- (Available on Amazon. I just searched “cataract sunglasses, and several options came up.) The glare of the sun was more than I could stand when I went outside. Regular sunglasses didn’t help much. I remembered that after cataract surgery, I was given some inexpensive plastic sunglasses that really helped. They had black lenses and then wide bowls that kept the sun from coming in from the side. These glasses are available from Amazon or Walmart. I think they are about ten bucks.

Pocket Magnifier- (I found it on Amazon by searching “pocket magnifiers with 10X magnification.) Being a diabetic, I wear a 24 hour Dexcom Glucose Monitor. Blood glucose numbers are registered on a small meter carried in your pocket. Naturally, I couldn’t read the numbers. A small pocket magnifier takes care of that problem.

Ruby XL HD Video Magnifier by Freedom Scientific- This is a tool I use all day. It has a 5 inch screen, and is about the size of a cell phone. Pressing a button allows you to select magnification from 2x to 14x. Another button allows you to select different font and background colors. This device is lightweight and can be help up to the computer screen without tiring and is simpler to use than changing font and display sizes on the computer.

Explorer 8, a video amplifier by Enhanced Vision- This unit is much like the Ruby but has an 8 inch screen. It has great resolution so is good for reading faded documents.

Merlin Ultra, a video magnifier by Enhanced Vision- This amazing unit has a 24 inch screen and an X-Y table. I use this unit many times during the day for both reading and writing. There is plenty of room to get your hand under the camera, and you can see your hand, the tip of the pen, and the paper well enough to do a decent job of writing. There is an optional switch available from Enhanced Vision that allows you to switch back and forth between the Merlin and your computer so you can flip from screen to screen when working on a project. All three of the magnifiers listed have the same basic function and are quite usable.

LyriQ text reader by Zyrlo- This is a magic device. You can lay a printed page on it’s platen, and it will read it to you. You can select a male voice or a female voice. And it can read pages printed in English or Spanish. You can control how fast they talk and how loud they talk. LyriQ has a limited memory, so you can save items if you wish.

Lined tablets are available that have heavy black lines about ½ inch apart. People with poor vision have trouble writing in straight lines, so the tablet helps a lot.

Dave Thomas

7/20/2023

When I first showed signs of macular degeneration (MD), I was referred to a retina specialist. At that time, the fix for MD was a laser treatment to cauterize the blood vessels. I had several laser fixes during the first couple of years. Medications were being developed for injections directly into the eyeballs. When the first medication became available (I can’t recall the name), I got those injections when required.

In a few months, a new medication called Eylea became available. I was told it was developed to fight cancer by starving the cancer cells of blood. Some research group thought it might work for MD as well, and they were proven to be correct. I’ve had Eylea injections in both eyes every 6 to 8 weeks for some time now with great success. So far as I know, I’ve had no bleeding at all.

I can never get enough light. It’s always twilight. Dr. London suggested that eyelid surgery would open my eyes enough to improve my vision somewhat. He was correct. The surgery has given me more light and has helped. With the eyelids open further, I’m now prone to dry eyes and must use eye drops. I’ve never used eye drops and am not very good at it. I’ve begun to refer to eye drops as “face wash” as I get the stuff all over me.

There is a part of the eye that hardens as you age and causes a condition known as Geographical Atrophication or GA. A new medication has become available to combat this- Sifovre. It also requires injections in both eyes. Some patients have declared that it has improved their vision. I hope I’ll be able to say the same.

Dave Thomas

7/20/2023