Colour Vision

Theory and
Testing
What is colour vision?

+ Colour vision is a capacity of an organism or machine to

distinguish objects based on the wavelengths (or frequencies) off
the light they reflect ,emit or transmit.
+ Perception of colours is a a subjective process where the brain
and nervous system response to the visual stimuli that emerge
when incident light reacts with the the several types of cone
receptors in the eye. Jennifer Birch Diagnosis of
defective color vision
Characteristics of colour vision

+ Hue – capacity of the eye to discriminate between the adjacent

wavelength.
+ Brightness- depends on luminous flux.
+ Saturation- it measures the minimum quantity of a given
wavelength that must be added to the white light for change in
appearance to be detected.
Jennifer Birch Diagnosis of
defective color vision
Theories of color vision

1. Additive colour theory

2. Subtractive colour theory
3. Thomas Young theory
4. Young Helmholtz theory
5. Herring’s opponent theory
6. Tetrachromatic theory
+ Note
1. Trichromaticity of vision- any colour can be matched by an
appropriate mixture of three primary colours.
2. The most fundamental aspect of normal colour vision is that it
is trichromatic.
3. Person with normal colour vision match any colour by a
suitable mixture of three primary colours.

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Thomas young theory

+ Young lead the foundation for a trichromatic theory of colour vision.

+ The trichromatic theory is a theory of colour and how human
perceive colour. According to this theory the human retina contains
three different receptors for colour meaning (each one is most
sensitive for one colour).
+ These colour receptors combine the colours to produce the
perception of virtually any colour.like there are new receptors
specific to orange but by stimulating the right cones in the right way
orange colour is produced.

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Young helmholtz theory
+ About 50 years later Hermann Von helmholtz describe the eyes
cones as each corresponding to one of the short medium or long
wavelength.
+ 3 Cone photoreceptors on the retina which is sensitive to different
wavelength.
+ The sensitivity of blue, green and red cones are different with blue
cones being more sensitive (which help explains why things at night
seem blue –tinged).
+ They also cover very different distributions across the light spectrum
with the red and green cones having significant overlap.

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🔺Erythropsin

🟢Chloropsin

🔷Cyanoipsin

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Herring’s opponent theory

+ At around the same time herring proposed an opponent theory of colour vision based on
many subjective observation of colour appearance.
+ These observations included appearance of hue’s ,simultaneous contrast, after images and
colour vision deficiencies.
+ He noticed that certain observations were never perceived to occur together.for example:-
colour perception is never described as reddish –green or yellowish-blue while
combination of red and yellow ,red &blue and green & blue are readily perceived.
+ This suggested him that there was something fundamental about the red green and yellow
blue pairs causing them to oppose one another.

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+ Similar observations were made of simultaneous contrast in
which objects placed on the red background appear greener,or
on green background appear redder,on a yellow background
appear bluer and on the blue background appear yellower.
+ It occurs due to the opponent nature of visual afterimages.(like
afterimage of RED Is GREEN)
+ Herring proposed that there are three types of receptors,but
herring’s receptors had bipolar responses to light-dark,red-green
and yellow-blue.

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Cont..

+ Based on 4 primary colours :-red ,green,blue and yellow

arranged in opponent pairs.
Red – Green

Yellow -Blue

White- Black
Colour vision deficiency

+ The inability to distinguish certain colours.

+ One or more of the cone types is missing or defective to any extent.
+ Abnormal colour matching and colour confusions.
+ Marked reduction in the number of separate colours that can be
distinguished in the spectrum.
+ Lack of any color sensation.

Adler’s physiology
Types of color defect.

+ INHERITED COLOUR VISION DEFECT:- Are genitically

inherted and congenital defect.
#Non pathological and incurable.
+ ACQUIRED COLOUR VISION DEFECT:- A change in color
vision may be the prelude to serious ocular and systemic condition.
#side effects of certain drugs medications or toxins.

Principles of primary ophthalmology by Daniel Albert

Adler’s physiology
 Classification of color Vn defect

Congenital Acquired
Type 1 R-G
Anomalous Dichromatism Monochromatism deficiency
trichromatism
Type 2 R-G
Protenomaly Protanopia deficiency

Type 3 B-Y
Deuteranomaly Deutranopia
deficiency
Rod monochromatism
Tritanomaly Tritanopia Cone monochromatism
+ Trichromatism:- all the 3 systems at present
+ Dichromatism:- one system is absent
+ Monochromatism:- two systems are absent.

The three systems are are:-

Red,Green & Blue

Principles of primary ophthalmology by Daniel Albert

 Anomalous trichromatism
+ People with anomalous trichromat vision use all three colors
receptors but one pigment is misaligned in that.

1. Protanomaly:-Reduced red sensitivity

2. Deuteranomaly:- Reduced green sensitivity
3. Tritanomaly:- Reduced blue sensitivity

Principles of primary ophthalmology by Daniel Albert

Dichromatism

+ One of the visual pigment is absent.

1. Protanopia:-unable to receive red.

2. Deuteranopia:-unable to receive green
3. Tritanopia:-unable to receive blue

Adler’s physiology
Principles of primary ophthalmology by Daniel Albert
Monochromatism or achromatopsia
+ Refers to individual who has only a single cone pigment or who lack
cone pigments altogether (rod monochromatism).
+ Rod monochromats can distinguish colored objects only in terms of
brightness have a poor acuity (around 20/100 to 20/200) because they
lack foveal cones.
+ These patients are photo for big and even ordinary illumination
dazzles them by saturating their rod system.
+ this syndrome should be considered in the the differential diagnosis
of the infant with poor vision and irregular pendulum nystagmus a
list that includes disorder such as optic nerve hypoplasia.
Principles of primary ophthalmology by Daniel Albert
+ Retinal diseases oftemonochromacy:+ relatively low deficiency
while optic nerve disorders show relative red green
deficiency(Still exceptions are there).
+ Cone monochromatism :- normal visual acuity(single type of
cone in the retina). Catagories of cone monochromacy:-
# Blue cone monochromacy,also known as S cone monochromacy.
# Green cone monochromacy,also known as M-cone
monochromacy
#Red cone monochromacy known as L-Cone monochromacy.

Principles of primary ophthalmology by Daniel Albert

Acquired colour vision defect

+ There are three types:-

1. Type -1 red-green deficiency
2. Type-2 red-green deficiency
3. Type -3 blue- yellow deficiency

Adler’s physiology
Principles of primary ophthalmology by Daniel Albert
Clinical tests for colour vision defect
1. Pseudo isochromatic plate tests
+ Ishihara colour vision chart.
+ AOHRR plate.
2. Arrangement tests
+ Farnsworth Munsell-100 Hue test
+ Farnsworth D-15 test
3. Anamaloscopen
+ Nagel’s anamaloscope
4. Occupational test
+ Lantern test

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Pseudochromatic plate tests

+ Based on the color confusion.

+ Most commonly used tests, easily and rapidly administered.
Most are designed to screen for the presence of red green
inherited colour vision defects.

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Ishihara color vision chart

1. Demonstration plate- both normal and Color vision patient can read.(1)
2. Transformation plate(2-9)
3. Vanishing plate(10-17)
4. Hidden plate(18-21)
5. Diagnostic plate(22-25)
6. Tracing plate(26-38)

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Tracing plate(26-38)
+ It is used in illiterate person and children.
AO-HRR plate
+ The AO-HRR pseudochromatic plates are not available since 1970.3 rd and
4th edition were released at the end of 2002.3 rd edition is not recommended
for clinical use.4th edition was then favorably evaluated.
+ There are two sections to the test:- one for screening and the other for the
diagnosis of type and the grading of severity.
+ The test plates are preceded by four demonstration plates one of which has
no symbols( it will characterise the response of patient when no symbol is
seen).
+ 6 vanishing plates:- two plates for or try it and effects and four plates for
protan and deutan defects then 6 screening plates.
+ The screening plates are followed by 10 plates for the diagnosis and
grading of severity of protan and deutan defects.4 plates for grading
severity of tritan defect. Borish Clinical Refraction
Method for this color vision test.

+ Good room illumination as daylight.

+ Patient should wear appropriate spectacle correction and occlude
one eye.
+ The test plate is held at a distance of 75 cm.
+ Plane of the plate and line of the sight of vision should be
perpendicular (tilted 45 degree)
+ Ask the patient to read the plates.
+ For illiterate patient ask to trace the line in the plates.

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 Farnsworth-Munsell 100 hue test
+ Provides most sensitive assessment of hue discrimination.
+ Results are especially useful for monitoring changes in the status of colour vision
and for assessing differences between the two eyes.
+ The colours are Munsell papers of different hues that are placed in black plastic caps
that substend about 1.5 degrees at the usual test distance (I,e eye on desktop).
+ It is used for red green and blue yellow deficiency.
+ Total of 85 different caps with varying hues and are divided into 4 trays.
+ Two end caps are fixed in position In 4 trays.
+ When the box are opened ,the surface is normal to the line of sight and 45 degrees to
the direction of illumination.
+ During test the clinician removes the movable caps from one tray at a time and
patient has to arrange it according to hue with similar color of the reference caps.
+ Graphically the points are plotted for each cap. Borish Clinical Refraction
Farnsworth D-15 test
+ It is used for red green and blue yellow deficiency
+ Capable of detecting moderate-to-severe colour vision deficiency
+ Contains at 12 mm reference cap and 15 numbered disk with all different hues.
+ Caps which substends an angle of 1.5 degree at 50 cm
+ The patient’s task is to arrange the coloured caps in order compared to the reference
cap.
+ Capable of detecting monochromacy.
+ Used to access congenital and acquired defects.
+ Difficult for young children to distinguish.
Jennifer birch diagnosis of defective colour vision
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Anomaloscope

+ Based on colour match known as Rayleigh equationR+G=Y.

+ It is used to determine red green defect.
+ On the instrument monochromatic yellow light is presented in half of
two degree circular field and mixture of monochromatic red green
light is presented in the other half.
+ Patients task is to match mix spectral red green lights to the other half
of yellow light.

Jennifer birch diagnosis of defective colour vision

Nagel’s anamaloscope
+ Two knobs:-one changes the brightness of yellow and other
changes the mixture of red and green.
+ The matching range recorded from matching limits obtained on
red/green mixture scale.

Jennifer birch diagnosis of defective colour vision

Nagel’s anamaloscope

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