In 2017, a study funded by Brien Holden Vision Institute and published in The Lancet Global Health, a British scientific and medical journal, garnered a lot of attention. This one makes an alarming forecast: The number of blind and partially sighted people in the world could triple by 2050. But what has happened since then? Let's take stock.
Focus on The Lancet Global Health study
The study makes the following observation on the year 2015:
- 36 million people in the world were Blind ;
- 217 million had a visual impairment moderate or severe;
- 188 million had mild visual impairment.
The people most affected are countries in Africa and Asia, women (representing 20 million out of the 36 mentioned above) and the elderly.
At issue: the growth demographic in low-income geographic areas, where vision care is not sufficiently accessible and developed. As a result, most cases of blindness could have been avoided by better prevention, earlier care and easier access to care. In addition, the visual disabilities the most common are age-related. In other words, the aging of the population is also playing a role in raising these numbers.
Based on data from more than 288 studies, published between 1980 and 2015, and by applying a mathematical model, the researchers in this study were able to predict the evolution of the number of visually impaired people in the world from 2020 to 2050.
The study therefore suggests that if the trends observed at the time continue, the world could well and truly see the number of blind people tripling in just 30 years. We would go from 36 million blind people to 115 million by 2050. A rather alarming result.
The researchers point out that the quality of the data may vary from country to country and that countries do not necessarily have the same definition of visual impairment. Although they warn about the limitations of their study, there is an urgent need for access to care, medical advances, prevention And the early detection eye problems!
Where have we been since 2017?
WHO: first global vision report
In 2019, The World Health Organization (OMS) published the first global vision report. At least 2.2 billion people suffer from visual impairment, including one billion of these cases that could have been prevented or remain untreated. As specified in the study of the scientific journal mentioned above, for the WHO, these figures are linked to the aging of the population and difficulties in accessing care, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
The fact that the world's population is aging is leading to the rise of age-related disorders such as cataracts, AMD (Age-Related Macular Degeneration) or glaucoma. In addition, some do not have sufficient resources or access to adequate care. Therefore, they are not treated in time for conditions such as diabetic retinopathy, myopia, presbyopia, glaucoma, and cataracts. But these are eye defects that can be corrected by wearing glasses or by surgery!
If we take the case of diabetes, which is on the rise in the world population, if it is not treated in time, it can cause complications, especially at the visual level with diabetic retinopathy.
The WHO report also highlights the importance of integrating vision care in health systems to prevent the future increase in cases of visual impairment. It also highlights the positive impact this could have on social inclusion, employment and the quality of life of those affected.
Indeed, visual impairment has, on the one hand, an impact on the individual by affecting the proper development of very young children or by degrading the quality of life for adults. And, on the other hand, it has an impact on the economy by causing a loss of productivity.
How can we counter the trend?
To counter the increase in blindness and visual impairment globally, prevention and intervention strategies are needed. And prevention is also the basis for much of the work carried out by WHO to support member states in order to reduce inequalities in access to care, to care for patients at an early age and to Raise awareness among the population.
This requires supports and resources to test your visual acuity or to do prevention by communicating about good practices in eye health, promoting a world day each year in order to sensitize, and much more!
Indeed, prevention is one of the best tools to make people aware that vision is important and that it is necessary to carry out regular eye exams to make sure that everything is fine or in order to detect and take care of eye disorders in time.
In addition, if you want to know simple measures to protect your eyes, find them in our previous blog post: “Visual health: detection and prevention”.
It is time to act
Faced with the forecasts made for 2050, The urgent need to act is more present than ever. It is important to support research and innovation in vision care to develop solutions that can reverse this trend. Investing in prevention, improving access to treatments and strengthening services for eye care can make a huge difference in the lives of millions of people.
That's why, at Magic Sight, we offer electronic glasses in order to improve your visual experience! To find out more about our glasses, contact us.
.png)
.png)
.png)