Child Vision Lab showcases innovative mental health research at global low vision conference
17 October 2025
A young patient at Moorfields and member of Eye-YPAG — a young people’s advisory group for eye and vision research — recently shared how their condition had affected their confidence and social life:
My eyes were the main reason I didn’t want to speak to anyone. I couldn’t go a day without someone asking me, ‘What’s wrong with your eyes?’ My condition stopped me feeling secure with myself. Eye-YPAG has shown me how much support there is out there.
Their experience highlights the emotional challenges many young people face when living with eye conditions — an issue that researchers at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology (IoO) are working to address.
Drawings created by members of Eye-YPAG on what mental health looks like to them
Dr Michael Crossland, principal optometrist at Moorfields Eye Hospital and senior research fellow at the IoO, is leading a team alongside Dr Danny Ball and PhD researcher Rachael Canavan from the IoO’s Child Vision Lab. Together, they are exploring ways to improve mental health support for young people affected by vision loss.
Their work is supported by Moorfields Eye Charity research awards, as well as a funding partnership between the charity and the Medical Research Foundation.
Recently, members of the Child Vision Lab presented their findings at the International Society for Low Vision Research and Rehabilitation Conference in Florence — a global event attended by hundreds of scientists, clinicians, and people with vision impairment.
Dr Crossland noted a shift in focus at this year’s event:
Compared to previous versions of this conference, there was a particular interest in the mental health, fatigue, and sleep disturbance experienced by people with vision impairment.
Rachael Canavan also shared insights from her Moorfields Eye Charity-funded PhD project, which examines the mental wellbeing of adolescents living with vision loss. She said:
This project is so important to me. I was shocked by the lack of research investigating the impact that vision impairment has on young people’s mental health — and by the absence of a comprehensive support package for them. I believe that this project will help redress that.
Rachael Canavan standing beside her research poster at the conference
Dr Danny Ball presented additional research on the link between vision impairment and sleep disturbance. The team received positive feedback at the conference and noted how valuable the opportunity was to share their work with the wider research and clinical community:
We would like to thank Moorfields Eye Charity for helping us to disseminate our work in this way.
Dr Ball presenting his poster at the conference
The three-day conference featured around 700 presentations from experts including neuroscientists, ophthalmologists, and lived experience advocates — reflecting the growing global interest in improving quality of life for people with vision impairment.
As research continues, the team hopes to drive meaningful change in how young people with vision loss are supported — not only through clinical care, but through vital mental health and wellbeing services.
