INTRODUCTION: The autonomy and independence, resulting in improved quality of life, have been studied in recent years, due to the increasing rate of population aging, also arousing the interest of ophthalmology, speech therapy and rehabilitation. OBJECTIVE: To determine the characteristics of this population and evaluate the results in the visual aspects of reading and writing in elderly with low vision, pre and post speech therapy. METHODS: We conducted a descriptive and cross-sectional study, evaluating 23 subjects with low vision, from the outpatient clinic of Subnormal Vision of Campinas State University. The questionnaire was administered before and after speech therapy, in three meetings. RESULTS: The most common eye disease was glaucoma (47.8%). Fifteen patients (65.2%) reported using some kind of optical aid, including glasses, magnifying glass, tele-magnifying glass and magnifying glass ruler. Before attending the meetings, 34.8% of subjects (n=8) reported no reading or writing after visual loss. After participating in the meetings, 50.0% (n=4) of those who reported no more reading and writing, used them again. CONCLUSION: After speech therapy there was improvement and frequency of performing activities of reading and writing. The importance of rehabilitation actions is related to the promotion of independence and autonomy for the visually impaired elderly.
Quality of Life; Elderly; Low Vision; Rehabilitation; Speech Pathology; Reading and Writing
