Based on visual acuity testing, a person is considered legally blind when their best corrected vision is 20/200, which means they need to be at least 20 feet away to see something that a person with normal vision can see from 200 feet away.
20/70 to 20/160, this is considered moderate visual impairment, or moderate low vision. 20/200 or worse, this is considered severe visual impairment, or severe low vision. 20/500 to 20/1000, this is considered profound visual impairment or profound low vision.
If you're legally blind, your vision is 20/200 or less in your better eye or your field of vision is less than 20 degrees. That means if an object is 200 feet away, you have to stand 20 feet from it in order to see it clearly. But a person with normal vision can stand 200 feet away and see that object perfectly.
20/200 - This is the level at which you are considered to be legally blind. That means a person with 20/200 vision has to be 20 feet away from an object to see clearly, whereas a person with normal eyesight can see clearly at 200 feet away.
In most cases, patients cannot correct low vision completely by using prescription glasses or contact lenses. Patients with this condition are either partially sighted (20/70 to 20/200 vision with corrective lenses) or legally blind (20/200 vision or worse with corrective lenses).
Blind Leading the Blind
In order to be legally blind, you must have a visual acuity of 20/200. This means that even with glasses or contacts, you can only read the first letter at the top of the Snellen Chart, if that. You can also be legally blind if you can see, but only in a very small window in your eye.
20/200 to 20/400 is considered severe visual impairment, or severe low vision. 20/500 to 20/1,000 is considered profound visual impairment, or profound low vision. Less than 20/1,000 is considered near-total visual impairment, or near total blindness.
-3.00 diopters or less is mild. -3.00 to -6.00 diopters is moderate. -6.00 to -9.00 diopters is severe. -9.00 diopters or more is extreme.
20/100 vision qualifies as having low vision, which needs eyeglasses to correct. Normal visual acuity is 20/20 vision, while 20/200 vision with a field of vision of 20 percent or less means being legally blind.
It seems that the best eyesight ever reported in a human was in an Aborigine man with 20/5 vision! To give you an idea of how clear and far he could see, his vision measurement compares to the natural sight of eagles. From 20 feet, he could perceive the fine details that most people can only see from 5 feet away!
Legal blindness is defined as a visual acuity of 20/200 or worse, with the best possible correction, or a visual field of 20 degrees or less. Visual acuity alone cannot indicate how much a person's life will be affected by vision loss.
This means that, without eyewear, they would not be able to see well enough to see certain things, drive, and so on. Visual acuity less than 20/200 is considered legally blind, but to actually fit the definition, the person must not be able to attain 20/200 vision even with prescription eyewear.
While there's no "bad" eye prescription, you can be "legally blind" when your prescription is 20/200 or worse. Different diseases can cause bad eyesight, some treatments can help improve your vision.
With visual acuity of 20/100, you aren't legally blind. However, you may be referred for a specialized low vision exam to identify what optical devices or other support systems could help you.
The maximum negative eye power is typically around -20 diopters. This means that if you have myopia of -20 diopters, you will need to wear glasses or contact lenses with a power of -20 in order to see clearly.
Part 1 of the U.S. definition of legal blindness states this about visual acuity: A visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better-seeing eye with best conventional correction (meaning with regular glasses or contact lenses).
20/200+: This means you have a significant vision issue. You will most likely need to wear glasses all the time. Your eye doctor may also recommend specific lenses to improve your overall sight.
Visual acuity of 20/20 is considered “perfect vision” because no aids are required to see better, but people can have better than 20/20 vision.
According to the American Ophthalmology Association, it is possible to have clearer vision with age. This is referred to as second sight. But this clarity of vision will occur based on the vision problem you had before.
Legal blindness occurs when a person has central visual acuity (vision that allows a person to see straight ahead of them) of 20/200 or less in his or her better eye with correction. With 20/200 visual acuity, a person can see at 20 feet, what a person with 20/20 vision sees at 200 feet.
A person is considered legally blind if they cannot see at six metres what someone with normal vision can see at 60 metres or if their field of vision is less than 20 degrees in diameter.
You may qualify for SSDI benefits or SSI payments if you're blind. We consider you to be blind if your vision can't be corrected to better than 20/200 in your better eye.
This is a fairly mild amount of nearsightedness. If you are -4.25, that means you have 4 and 1/4 diopters of nearsightedness. This is more nearsighted than -1.00 and requires stronger (thicker) lenses.
A -5 eye and a -7 eye are not much differently at risk, but both are significantly more at risk of retinal problems than a more normal, non-myopic eye. These are rare, though, so no cause for alarm.
Normal vision is 20/20, which means you can read an eye chart at 20 feet. To be considered legally blind, your vision needs to be 20/200 or worse, which means you can read an eye chart at 20 feet about as well as someone with normal vision could read it at 200 feet.