Top 3 Visual Impairments Alzheimer’s Caregivers Should Watch For
Understanding Alzheimer’s related visual impairments.
Many people with Alzheimer’s disease may experience critical vision impairments because their brains are not fully processing visual information. Although there may not be anything physically wrong with their eyes, their brains cannot interpret what is being seen.
According to an Alzheimer’s Foundation of America Care Connection webinar by Kendra Farrow, Research and Training Associate with the National Research and Training Center (NRTC) at Mississippi State University, caregivers should watch for the following visual impairments:
- Peripheral Field Loss: Individuals cannot see things that are on the side, top, or bottom. They may seem as though they are looking through a tube, which may cause them to trip or bump into things.
- Loss of Contrast Sensitivity: Individuals may have a hard time seeing objects of the same color.
- Difficulty with Depth Perception: Individuals may have a harder time determining how far away an object is. They may also struggle with understanding changes in elevations and telling the difference between three-dimensional objects and flat ones. For instance, a carpet that connects to a wood floor may be perceived as a step up or down. Due to these difficulties, the person may feel and appear off-balance.
How Caregivers Can Help:
- Place objects directly in front of the person.
- Declutter floors and tabletops.
- Use high contrast colors when possible (for example, put mashed potatoes on a dark plate on a white tablecloth; place a dark-colored sofa on a light-colored carpet).
- Keep areas well lit.
- Ensure that the edges of stairs are well-defined (for example, paint the edges of stairs or place brightly colored tape on them).
- Reduce glare in all settings (for example, close window blinds if the sun is shining in, and cover shiny surfaces with light-colored mats or tablecloths).
To learn more about this topic, view the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America Care Connection webinar by Kendra Farrow, Understanding Vision Impairments & How to Help.