International Standards:
For Vision, Eye Care and Ophthalmology
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Standards headlines:
- ICO Report and Statement on Functional Vision
- 1984 ICO Visual Acuity Measurement Standard
- Driving report recommends greater uniformity in testing
- WHO report emphasizes visual functioning and quality of life
- Vision loss resolution available as PDF
(Also see: More News of international standards)
ICO Report and Statement on Functional Vision
At its meeting in June in Hong Kong (2008), the ICO adopted a report on "Assessment and Rehabilitation of Vision-related Functioning" prepared by ICO Standards Committee Member August Colenbrander, MD.
The report makes the distinction between "Visual Functions," which describe how the eye functions and "Functional Vision," which describes how the person functions in vision-related activities. It aims at expanding awareness of the functional consequences of vision loss among all those involved with eye care.
The Report can be downloaded from archive.icoph.org/pdf/ICOFunctionalVision.pdf and Dr. Colenbrander's presentation of the report at the 2008 World Ophthalmology Congress in Hong Kong is at ico.scientificabstracts.org/epswoc2008.cfm?id=186&bhcp=1. (You will need to advance the slides in sync with the audio.)
The ICO subsequently adopted the following statement on functional vision:
"Recognizing the importance of visual functioning for quality of life, the International Council of Ophthalmology states that:
- Ophthalmic care extends beyond the treatment of eye disease to promoting the well being of the patient.
- Treatment decisions should consider patient needs and ascertain that the clinician’s expectations match those of the patient.
- Studies of ophthalmic outcomes should include appropriate tools to evaluate visual functioning.
These principles should feature prominently in ophthalmic training, ophthalmic practice and in health care policy decisions."
1984 ICO Visual Acuity Measurement Standard available
The ICO's involvement in defining international standards for measuring visual acuity date back at least to 1978, when it published a Recommendation of Visual Acuity Standardization. That document was replaced in October 1984, when the ICO adopted a Visual Acuity Measurement Standard recommended by its Visual Functions Committee.
You can download the 1984 Visual Acuity Measurement Standard from:
Driving report recommends greater uniformity in testing
The ICO's draft report on "Vision Requirements for Driving Safety" recognizes the profound impact vision requirements for driving have and the need to make them more uniform around the world. It evaluates:
- current visual requirements for obtaining a driver’s license in various countries
- the literature on the relationship between vision and driving safety, and
- ways to assess different visual functions that relate to driving ability.
The report evaluates various options for testing and suggests that a compromise may have to be found between ideal testing and economic feasibility.
It can be downloaded as a PDF file from archive.icoph.org/pdf/visionfordriving.pdf (376 KB).
The recommendations are listed at archive.icoph.org/standards/drivingrecs.html.
WHO emphasizes visual functioning and quality of life
The WHO report on "Development of Standards for Characterization of Vision Loss And Visual Functioning" also recommends greater focus on developing cross-cultural methods for assessing visual functioning and vision-related quality of life, particularly patient-reported assessments.
The participants suggested that a new Visual Functioning Questionnaire with 20 questions, VFQ-20, which is included in the report, be tested and validated for international use.
Vision loss resolution available as PDF
The Visual Standards resolution (13 KB) and full report (144 KB) are available as Portable Document Format (PDF) files.
To read them, you will need Adobe Reader, which is a free download.
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Also see: ICO Standards for Measurement of Vision Loss
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