Use of Assistive Equipment
According to data collected from The Lighthouse National Survey on Vision Loss (The Lighthouse Inc., 1995), only 30% of adults (age 45 and older) with self-reported vision impairments report using an optical device (such as a magnifier or telescope).
Large print materials are used by 21% of adults with self-reported vision impairments. Other adaptive devices (e.g., talking books, talking clocks, etc.) are used by an even smaller minority (under 5%) (The Lighthouse Inc. 1995).
According to data from the 1994 National Health Interview Survey on Disability (Russell, Hendershot, LeClere , & Howie 1997), approximately 527,000 persons in the U.S. use some type of vision device:
Telescopic lenses: 158,000
White cane: 130,000
Readers: 68,000
Braille: 59,000
Computer equipment: 34,000
Other vision technology: 277,000
According to the American Printing House for the Blind (1999), approximately 10% of blind students (5,557) primarily use braille and 25% primarily use large or regular print (14,571).
Based on estimates compiled by the American Foundation for the Blind (2007), just over 7,000 Americans use guide dogs.