World view
Correction of refractive error in the Victorian population: the
feasibility of "off the shelf" spectacles
Raj Maini, Jill Keeffe, Le Ann Weih, Catherine A McCarty, Hugh R Taylor
Centre for
Eye Research Australia, Melbourne, Australia
Correspondence to: Dr J Keeffe, Centre for Eye Research Australia, University of Melbourne, 32 Gisborne Street, East Melbourne, Victoria 3002, Australia jillek{at}unimelb.edu.au
Accepted for publication 21 June 2001
AIMS
To assess the
feasibility of providing a stock of ready made spectacles for
correction of refractive error in the general population.
METHODSData were
collected in the Visual Impairment Project, a population based survey
of Victorian residents aged 40 years or older in randomly selected
urban and rural sample areas. This included a refractive eye
examination and the proportion of subjects with hypermetropia,
emmetropia (defined as 
1.0 to +1.0D spherical equivalent), and
myopia documented in the 40-60 year age group.
RESULTS2595 (54.8%)
participants were aged between 40 and 60 years. Those with a best
corrected visual acuity of less than 6/12, astigmatism of more than
1.25D, and anisometropia of more than 0.5D were excluded. 516 participants had refractive error which was deemed suitable for
correction by "off the shelf" spectacles. This represents 19.9% of
all participants between 40 and 60 years of age. Provision of
spectacles in 0.5D increments would provide suitable stock spectacles
for 85.5% of a 3.0 to +3.0D range or 89.2% of a 3.50 to +3.50D range.
CONCLUSIONSReady made
"off the shelf" spectacles could significantly alleviate visual
morbidity due to refractive error in up to 20% of an urban population
in Australia. This approach may also be useful in developing countries
with poor access to optometric services.
© 2001 by British Journal of Ophthalmology
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