Vision Atlas addresses need for broadened eye care
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The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness launched its Vision Atlas, a resource for broadening awareness of eye care needs, at the virtual United Nations Friends of Vision meeting.
The Vision Atlas contains estimates of the causes, magnitude and projections of vision loss developed by the Vision Loss Expert Group and The Lancet Global Health Commission on Global Eye Health.
“The Atlas reminds us of the enormous scale of the [vision loss] issue; 3 billion to 4 billion people worldwide need ongoing access to eye care and 1.1 billion of them experience sight loss because they don't have access to the eye care services they need,” Peter Holland, International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) CEO, said at the meeting.
For the vast majority, more than 90%, that sight loss could be avoided, according to a press release from IAPB.
“Lack of access is driven by and drives inequality, with sight loss far greater in low and middle-income countries, among older people and amongst women,” Holland said.
Of the 1.1 billion with vision loss, 90% live in low- and middle-income countries, 73% are older than 50 years, and 55% are women, according to the atlas, and “without significant investment, there will be 1.7 billion people with vision loss by 2050.
“All of us together have a shared responsibility to invest in and deliver the good quality eye care that's needed to ensure no one is left behind,” Holland said.
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