Color Blindness: Early Detection and Support

Some people require assistance in distinguishing between different types of colours. This condition is called Colour Blindness or Colour Vision Deficiency (CVD). It could be hereditary or for another reason.

What is Colour Blindness?

Colour Blindness is a visual impairment in which the affected person finds it difficult to perceive colours accurately. The situation arises due to the improper working of the cone cells in the retina (responsible for colour identification).

Colour-blind people have difficulty distinguishing between different colours. The severity of colour blindness ranges from mild to complete. It is usually inherited. Men are more likely to be born with colour blindness as compared to women.

Colour blindness is lifelong but it does not interfere with the overall vision. However, the condition can pose challenges in situations such as differentiating between traffic lights, reading colour codes, or choosing clothing based on colour. An eye specialist or Ophthalmologist can help you live a better life with colour blindness.

Types of Color Blindness

There are different types of colour blindness depending on the sensitivity of light. The three types of colour blindness are as follows:

• Red-Green Color Blindness: In this type of colour blindness, the person cannot distinguish between the red and green colours. The cones present in the retina do not perceive the colour properly. It is of two types:
  • Deuteranomaly: A condition that causes green to appear identical to red colour. 6% of the total colour-blind people fall under this category. It is a mild condition and does not interfere with the daily routine.
  • Protan: Protanomaly is the second most common colour blindness affecting around 20% of the cases. In this case, the red cones do not work properly. Such people are unable to differentiate between similar shades such as red, pink, orange, etc.
• Blue-Yellow Color Blindness: In this type of colour blindness, people cannot distinguish between blue and yellow colours. The cones in the retina do not respond well to the blue light; therefore, the person does not differentiate among the shades of blue. It is of two types:
  • Tritanomaly: It is related to S-cones where the person is not able to differentiate between blue and green and between yellow and red colours. It is rarely found, 1 in 50,000 cases is affected by this type.
  • Tritanopia: It is a rare condition where the affected person cannot distinguish between green and yellow colour. The condition arises due to the abnormal functioning of blue cones.
• Monochromacy: It is the state of complete colour blindness where the person recognises all colours as shades of grey. It is an extremely rare condition as the affected person has only one type of cone present in the retina.
• Achromatopsia: A condition characterised by the partial or total absence of colour vision. The primary cause of achromatopsia is the absence of functioning cones. However, the vision is only confined to grey, black, and white colour.

Symptoms

Identifying colour deficiency is very important. The earlier you detect, the more efficient treatment you will get. But it is difficult to figure out colour blindness in kids. Here are a few points that must be noted to check the colour vision in kids:

• Use of wrong colours while drawing or painting, using red for leaves or purple for the face.
• Wrong interpretation of same colour objects, for example, if he sees an apple is red, he should retaliate it with other red colour objects.
• Difficulty in playing with colour-sorting toys and shows disinterest in such activities.

Furthermore, people affected by colour blindness may not distinguish between different shades of red and green, different shades of blue and yellow, or any colours. The defect can be mild, moderate, or severe depending on the type and degree of defect in the eyes.

How to Detect Colour Vision Defects

The main symptom of colour blindness is the identification of the wrong colour or finding it difficult to differentiate colours. There are two tests to detect colour blindness:

1. Ishihara test: It is a test to detect red-green colour blindness. The test includes ishihara plates containing dots in different colours and sizes that form numbers or patterns that are visible to people with normal colour vision but may be difficult to make out for those with colour blindness.
2. Hue Test: This test checks human vision for detecting colour blindness. A set of coloured tiles or caps are given that are required to be arranged in a specific order. The colour deficiency is detected by the errors made during the arrangement.

In addition to these two basic tests, more advanced tests can check the accuracy deficiency. These are:

• Anomaloscope Test: It is an instrument that can tell the accuracy of colour blindness. The test is done under expert supervision. The test allows individuals to match colours by adjusting the intensity of different wavelengths of light.

Treatments for Correcting Colour Vision

Till now there is no treatment available for inherited colour blindness. Some people find the use of coloured filter lens can help them distinguish colours while others find it worthless. The research is being carried out to treat the disease with the help of gene therapy. Hope we get an effective treatment and help the people suffering from the condition and make their lives easy.

Conclusion

Early detection of colour blindness is essential for timely assistance. Diagnosis can aid in early intervention through education and a proactive approach that can enhance our lifestyle. Regular eye examination and awareness are important for providing the necessary support to such people. MM Joshi Eye Institute, a well-known name in eye hospitals, has a team of professionals and researchers dedicated to the welfare of society. Making an appointment with us can aid in early detection and intervention.