Why are we addressing gender issues in vision loss?

In the last decade, there has been increasing evidence that women are affected by blindness and visual impairment to a much greater degree than men. A systematic review of global population-based blindness surveys carried out between 1980 and 2000 showed that blindness is about 40 per cent more common in women compared to men (in persons older than 50 years). Since then, there have also been a number of large national surveys (for example, in Pakistan and Nigeria), as well as many rapid assessment of avoidable blindness studies (RAABs), which have confirmed the earlier findings. We now know that being a woman is a significant risk factor for some eye diseases; it is also an important factor in the use of eye care services.