Disability statistics and demographics

Question 1

How many people globally have a vision impairment or blindness?

Answer 1

At least 2.2 billion people (WHO says 285 million)

Question 2

How many people worldwide are blind?

Answer 2

39 million

Question 3

How many people have a preventable or addressable visual impairment? What type of impairments?

Answer 3

1 billion —moderate or severe distance impairment due to unaddressed refractive error, and near-distance impairment due to unaddressed presbyopia.

Question 4

The majority of people with vision impairments are over what age?

Answer 4

50

Question 5

What color vision deficiency is most common? What demographic is most impacted, and how commonly?

Answer 5

Red-green. Northern European men, about 1 in 12, and women about 1 in 200. All other populations have lower incidence.

Question 6

How common is blue-yellow color-vision deficiency?

Answer 6

1 in 10,000, men and women equally

Question 7

How common is blue cone monochromacy?

Answer 7

1 in 100,000, more common in males

Question 8

How many people globally have low vision?

Answer 8

246 million, or 3.5% of the world’s population.

Question 9

What percent of people with vision impairments live in low-income countries?

Answer 9

90%.

Question 10

How many people globally are deaf or hard of hearing?

Answer 10

466 million, or 6.1% of the world population

Question 11

What percent of the global population has Central auditory processing disorder?

Answer 11

5%

Question 12

What percent of the global population is deafblind?

Answer 12

Between 0.2 and 2%.

Question 13

How many Americans have aphasia?

Answer 13

2,000,000.00

Question 14

How many people in Great Britain have aphasia?

Answer 14

At least 250,000

Question 15

What percent of the global population has selective mutism?

Answer 15

0.47 - 0.76%

Question 16

What percent of children have ADHD?

Answer 16

3 - 7%

Question 17

What condition often presents with manual dexterity / fine motor control disabilities?

Answer 17

ADHD

Question 18

What percent of US adults have mobility disabilities?

Answer 18

3.50%

Question 19

What percent of the world population is impacted by rheumatoid arthritis?

Answer 19

1%.

Question 20

What percent of adults are obese?

Answer 20

39 - 40%.

Question 21

What percent of the global population has an intellectual disability?

Answer 21

1 - 3%

Question 22

What percent of people with intellectual disabilities live in low-income countries?

Answer 22

80%.

Question 23

What percent of people with reading disabilities has dyslexia?

Answer 23

70 - 80%.

Question 24

What percent of the population has dyslexia?

Answer 24

5 - 10%, maybe as high as 17%. Affects girls and boys equally.

Question 25

What percent of people have dyscalculia?

Answer 25

3 - 6%

Question 26

What percent of the global population has ADHD?

Answer 26

11%.

Question 27

How frequent is ASD?

Answer 27

Worldwide, 1 in 160. Prevalence increasing. (Other sources say 1 in 100).

Question 28

How frequent is NVLD?

Answer 28

1 in 100 in the US.

Question 29

What percent of adults have a seizure at some point in their life?

Answer 29

2%.

Question 30

What proportion of adults that have had a seizure never have another one?

Answer 30

2/3

Question 31

When do seizures commonly begin?

Answer 31

Early childhood or late adulthood.

Question 32

What are the two groups of people with photosensitive epilepsy?

Answer 32

Those with pure photosensitivity that is only triggered by photosensitivity, and those that experience seizures at other times too.

Question 33

What percent of people with epilepsy have photosensitive epilepsy?

Answer 33

3%.

Question 34

What is the global prevalence of anxiety disorders?

Answer 34

2.5 - 7%, or 284 million.

Question 35

What is the most prevalent mental health disorder?

Answer 35

Anxiety.

Question 36

What is the prevalence of emotional disorders among children 9 - 17?

Answer 36

6.20%

Question 37

What percent of children globally suffer with mental health or behavioral disorders? What age group is most common?

Answer 37

20%. Adolescents between 10-19.

Question 38

What is the prevalence of behavioral disorders among children 9 - 17?

Answer 38

10.3%.

Question 39

What is the prevalence of emotional disorders among children 9 - 17?

Answer 39

6.2%.

Question 40

What minimum percent of school-age children complain of severe depression, suicidal thoughts, psychosis and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorders

Answer 40

3%.

Question 41

How many US students receive special education?

Answer 41

5.9 million.

Question 42

What percent of students receiving special education were classified as having multiple disabilities?

Answer 42

2%.

Question 43

What percent of the world's population has a disability?

Answer 43

15%

Question 44

What percent of the US population has a disability?

Answer 44

25%

Question 45

What is the global literacy rate for people with disabilities?

Answer 45

3%, 1% for women

Question 46

What percent of children with disabilities in developing countries do not attend school?

Answer 46

90%

Question 47

In OECD countries, do women or men report more disabilities?

Answer 47

Women

Question 48

What is the second most common cause of visual disabilities, and what percent does it make up?

Answer 48

Glaucoma, 12.3%

Question 49

What is the third most common cause of visual disabilities, and what percent does it make up?

Answer 49

Age-related macular degeneration, 8.7%

Question 50

What is the most common cause of visual disabilities, and what percent does it make up?

Answer 50

Cataracts, 51%

Question 51

What percent of people with disabilities in the US experience difficulty functioning?

Answer 51

2 - 4%

Question 52

What is the disposable income of people with disabilities?

Answer 52

$6 trillion

Question 53

What percent of people with disabilities live in developing countries?

Answer 53

80%

Question 54

Why is there so much disagreement on the prevalence of disability?

Answer 54

A few reasons: different definitions of disability results in different estimates; much data is self-reported, and people may not view themselves as disabled or impaired; different countries have more sophisticated data collection methods.

Question 55

In countries with life expectancies over 70 years, how long on average will a person live with a disability?

Answer 55

8 years, or 11.5% of lifespan.

Question 56

According to WHO, what percent of the world's population has a disability?

Answer 56

15%, or 1 billion people.