EyeOnVision May, 2022
May Issue, 2022 – A Historical Look at The Lighthouse
A Half-Century Collaboration Sourcing Gold-Standard Low Vision Diagnostics
The original layout engineering blueprint for the iconic Lighthouse Pocket PowerCard
The history of Precision Vision and The Lighthouse has been over half a century-long and rooted in the same mission-critical quality commitment to the industry and patients as it was in the very beginning.
In the late 1960s, Precision Vision’s founder, Ed Kopidlansky, Sr., decided to say “yes” to creating the Lighthouse charts and subsequently the Lighthouse illuminator cabinets. Ed’s wife, Patricia (the namesake of PattiPics™), collaborated with The Lighthouse and Dr. Eleanor Faye to create sentences for the Lighthouse PowerCard “Bee” Continuous Text Card.
Many flights to New York and long days were spent by Ed and the Lighthouse founders drafting the iterations of many of the charts used today, including the Lighthouse Pocket PowerCard Number & Word Recognition (also known as the “Game” Card). Exclusively manufactured then and now without compromising standards, Precision Vision continues the honored tradition of providing gold standard tests trusted and relied upon by industry leaders and eye care professionals around the world.
Original Print Verification Proofs
Seen above are the original proofs created and utilized to print the first Lighthouse pocket card manufactured exclusively by Precision Vision. Click any preview image to see further micro-details.
Eleanor Eaton Faye, MD, FAAO
A Little-Known Pioneering Role in Bringing the Professions of Optometry and Ophthalmology Together
By Bruce P. Rosenthal, OD, FAAO • Chief of Low Vision, Lighthouse Guild & Adjunct Professor, Mt. Sinai Hospital Department of Ophthalmology
The first Lighthouse was started in New York City and was known as “The New York Association for the Blind, The Lighthouse.” The Holt sisters' father, who was the publisher of the Holt book company, said they were “society women” who should start a charity. The Holt sisters started the NYAB Lighthouse in 1905, as well as opening Lighthouses around the world. They proceeded to put the name “Lighthouse” in the public domain so others could launch configurations across the US. However, Lighthouses around the country are completely independent and not affiliated with each other. The landmark NYC branch is currently known as the Lighthouse Guild, following the merger of Lighthouse International with the Jewish Guild for the Blind.
Dr. Eleanor Faye’s career in “subnormal” vision began when she asked Gerald Fonda, MD (a pioneer in his own right), to observe patients at the recently opened clinic. Though the organization had started in 1905, persons with a visual impairment were not treated as medical patients until 1953. By 1966, Dr. Faye had succeeded Dr. Fonda as the first woman medical director of The Lighthouse. Thus began another first: developing a distinctive team of interdisciplinary clinicians and specialists to manage the visually impaired population comprehensively.
Distance and Near Visual Acuity, Contrast Sensitivity, and Visual Fields of 10-Year-Old Children
Myers VS, Gidlewski N, Quinn GE, Miller D, Dobson V. Arch Ophthalmol. 1999;117(1):94–99. doi:10.1001/archopht.117.1.94
Subjects were tested monocularly using Lighthouse Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study distance and near ETDRS visual acuity charts alongside Pelli-Robson contrast sensitivity charts, with refractive error corrected according to Cryotherapy for Retinopathy of Prematurity study criteria. In this study, results for distance visual acuity, near visual acuity, and contrast sensitivity indicated systematically higher baseline values for the eye tested first than for the eye tested second.
Read More Study Data
The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc. is a private, not-for-profit social enterprise providing employment, support, and training opportunities for people who are blind, DeafBlind, and blind with other disabilities. Sourcing its initial organizational roots back to 1910 and the formation of a social club called the Seattle Association of the Blind, the organization was formally incorporated in 1918, focusing on creating employment opportunities for people who are blind in the Pacific Northwest.
Q: What is the difference between Original ETDRS Charts and the Lighthouse ETDRS Charts?
A: There are no clinical or research-based differences in optotype structure or sizing principles between the Original ETDRS Charts and the licensed edition of Lighthouse ETDRS Charts. There are a few subtle cosmetic modifications on the Lighthouse version, such as reference lines printed along the lower acuity rows, alongside a helpful metric table in the footer for quick conversion to Snellen fractions.
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