Are wearable Electronic Vision Enhancement Systems (wEVES) a beneficial solution for people with age related macular degeneration? A scoping review

Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of irreversible visual impairment in the UK. AMD has a wide-ranging detrimental impact on many areas of daily living including impairment of both functional ability and quality of life.

Optical and electronic Low Vision Aids (LVA) have been shown to provide cost effective functional benefits for people with visual impairment. Commercial companies are developing and marketing new wearable head-mounted electronic magnifiers, but there is less certainty about the research evidence to show how beneficial these devices are for people with AMD. The term “wearable Electronic Vision Enhancement Systems” (wEVES) is proposed to collectively describe these devices.

It is therefore intended to investigate the following research question: “What is known from the literature about the usefulness of wearable electronic vision enhancement systems for people with age related macular degeneration”. The following protocol was developed to ensure the scoping review followed guidance from the Joanna Briggs Institute and the PRISMA ScR flow chart.