Some have the wrong glasses. Others do not have glasses, but need them. No one knows how many people could improve their sight if they were given the right help. A research team from Aarhus University and Aarhus University Hospital has received DKK 2.8 million to look into this question.

2019.12.20 | Mette Louise Ohana

The project is expected to be completed in 2021, following which Professor and Ophthalmologist Toke Bek will be able to utilise the new knowledge to evaluate initiatives for the visually impaired. Photo: Lars Kruse, Aarhus University.

At the beginning of 2020, 5,000 randomly selected Danes will be contacted and asked to answer a questionnaire about their eyesight and to then undergo an eye examination. The aim is to improve the help available to those who have difficulty seeing properly despite using glasses, lenses, magnifying glasses or binoculars. But also to help those who struggle to recognise that it is time to get a pair of glasses, and others who may have an eye disease that they are unaware of.

The study is intended to provide an overview of the number of people with impaired eyesight and whether they receive the correct aids and treatments. The researchers also want to find out whether eye diseases such as e.g. glaucoma – which does not give symptoms until after the optic nerve has been damaged – can be discovered at an early stage.

The result of the research project, which is expected to be completed at the end of 2021, will be used to clarify whether some visually impaired people fail to receive the necessary help, and whether ophthalmologists could be better at targeting their efforts. The project is being be carried out by researchers from the Department of Clinical Medicine at Aarhus University as well as the Department of Ophthalmology at Aarhus University Hospital. It is headed by Professor and Chair and Consultant Toke Bek in collaboration with the Department of Public Health at Aarhus University.

The grant comes from the Synoptik Foundation and a private research donation through the Danish Association of the Blind.

Contact

Professor, Consultant, DMSc Toke Bek
Aarhus University, Department of Clinical Medicine and
Aarhus University Hospital, Department of Ophthalmology
Telephone: (+45) 3031 5636
Email: toke.bek@mail.tele.dk