Color Blindness

Color blindness ("dyschromatopsia") affects a person's ability to distinguish certain colors or patterns from one another. Usually the colors involved in color blindness are red, green, and blue. One or more of these colors can be absent from normal color detection in a person with color blindness.

In the retina there are three kinds of light sensitive cone cells. Each cone is sensitive to red, green, or blue light. When colors enter into the eye, these three cone cells normally operate to differentiate between all of the possible color combinations. If one or more of the cone cells fails, then color blindness sets in and the person may see altered colors. In very rare cases of color blindness there is a complete absence of color.

Color blindness is not a cessation of vision. Instead, colorblind people typically have slightly modified color and shading vision abilities. Some persons with color blindness do not realize that they have it.

If color blindness is suspected, a comprehensive examination by an experienced eye doctor should be performed. Early and specific detection can often benefit the colorblind person. One commonly used test is called the "pseudoisochromatic plate test."

The plate test is a basic visual test in which a patient is told to examine a poster of colored dots. People with normal vision can usually see certain patterns in the dots (like letters). Persons with color blindness often have problems in seeing the patterns in the dots. Depending on which kind of color blindness a person has, they will be able to discern certain patterns but not others.

Eye exams by a professional and experienced color blindness doctor should be performed at a young age. Many children who have color blindness that goes undetected are not able to keep up with their learning capabilities. It is important to detect and diagnose color blindness as early as possible. There are several therapies that can aid the person with color blindness if treated early on.

Occasionally color blindness can be improved with surgery. If the color blindness is caused by another eye injury or disease, for example, correcting that disease will help in correcting the color blindness. Usually, however, color blindness is caused by the brain instead of the eyes and doesn't respond to many treatments.

In many people, color blindness is a very slight impairment and does not affect their day-to-day lives. Detecting and diagnosing the color blindness early can improve the lives of those affected, however.