Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 25, 2026

Subjective Refraction Test Using a Smartphone for Vision Screening
Published on: October 18, 2024
Blindness and visual impairment due to uncorrected refractive error in sub-Saharan Africa: review of recent
Justin C Sherwin1, Susan Lewallen, Paul Courtright
1Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Aim:
The authors aimed to review published data on uncorrected refractive error (URE) as a cause of blindness and visual impairment in adults aged ≥40 years in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).
Methods:
Data were extracted from population-based prevalence surveys measuring presenting visual acuity (PVA). Results from 11 surveys performed in 10 countries in SSA, encompassing 39,458 people aged ≥40 years and older, are presented.
Results:
The prevalence of blindness (PVA<3/60 in better eye) ranged from 1.1% in an urban district of Cameroon to 7.9% in a rural district in Ethiopia. More than half of studies (6/11) reported no blindness due to URE. The proportion of moderate visual impairment (PVA ≤6/60 and >6/18) due to URE ranged from 12.3% to 57.1%. Excluding two studies that included uncorrected aphakia as part of URE, the highest proportion of blindness and severe visual impairment due to uncorrected aphakia was found in Gambia (15.2%) and Nigeria (15.8%), respectively.
Conclusion:
Although URE is a leading cause of visual impairment, it does not represent a major cause of blindness in SSA.
Related Concept Videos
Focusing of Light in the Eye
Photoreceptors and Visual Pathways
Diabetic Retinopathy
Glaucoma: Overview
Unrenewable Cells
Photoreceptors
The retina is composed of several layers and contains specialized cells called photoreceptors. The photoreceptors (rods and cones) change their membrane potential when stimulated by light energy. There are two types of photoreceptors—rods and cones—which differ in the shape of their outer...

