Delving Into the Visual System in the AMA Guides, Fifth Edition

The assessment of visual impairment using the AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment (AMA Guides), Fifth Edition, requires a thoughtful ophthalmologic evaluation and careful application of the functional vision tests and arithmetic criteria provided in Chapter 12, The Visual System, and other chapters, as applicable. The interpolation of the multiple dimensions of the visual system into the enumeration of a single impairment percentage may involve complex mathematical manipulations. Properly enumerated, the value can be utilized rigorously in impairment evaluations, functional evaluations, and even for academic research.