The visual acuity score compares your distance vision with that of people who have normal vision, using an eye chart. Each eye's score is expressed as two numbers, such as 20/20 (6/6) or 20/100 (6/30). The first number is the distance you stand from the chart, usually 20 ft (6 m) when using a typical wall chart. The second number is the distance from which people with normal eyesight can read the same line on the eye chart.
20/20 (6/6) vision is considered normal. A person with 20/20 vision can see at 20 ft (6 m) what people with normal vision can see at this distance.
- When the second number is smaller than the first number, the person's vision is better than normal. For instance, a person with 20/10 (6/3) vision can see from 20 ft (6 m) what people with normal vision can see from 10 ft (3 m).
- When the second number is larger than the first number, the person's distance vision is worse than normal.
- A person with 20/200 (6/60) vision or less in his or her best eye when wearing corrective lenses is considered legally blind.
For near vision, 14/14 (35/35) is normal, with 14 in. (36 cm) being the normal distance for reading. If the second number is greater than 14 (14/20, for example, or 35/50), it means that you have reduced near vision. You have to be 14 in. (36 cm) away to read print that people with normal near vision can read from 20 in. (51 cm).
A Jaeger (J) number is another way to rate your near vision. The J number relates to the size of text you could read on the Jaeger chart. The J number goes up as the print size of the text you read goes up. The higher the J number, the worse your near vision. The number can range from J1 to J16. For example:
- J1 means that you could read the smallest text on the chart and that you have 20/15 vision.
- J2 means the line of text you were able to read had larger print than J1, and your vision is 20/20.
- J3 means the line of text you were able to read had larger print than J1 and J2, and your vision is 20/40.
Tags:
refraction,
Vision
