Commentary by Dr. Kennedy Neukam
You have probably heard the term “color blind” before. Perhaps you have a family member or child that is color blind, or maybe you are color blind yourself. It is a common misconception that anyone who is color blind cannot see colors at all, which is not true! This is why the term color vision deficiency, or CVD, is a more accurate way of describing this range of conditions.
Color is perceived from special types of cells, called cones, that are concentrated in the back of our eyes. We have three types of cones, each type being responsible for recognizing a different range of the color spectrum to communicate to the brain. All three cones work together to create the colorful world we live in. In a person with CVD, one type of cone may have a shifted recognition or lack recognition altogether. This doesn’t always mean that they cannot see color at all, it just means they have a harder time differentiating between colors.
The most common type of CVD is red-green deficiency. This type of color deficiency is genetic and X-linked, so it more commonly affects boys whose mother has a color vision deficient family member. There are other forms of CVD, too, such as blue-yellow deficiency or achromatopsia. Achromatopsia means you don’t have any cones, so you don’t have any way to perceive color. This leaves a world of only black, white and gray.
Do you have someone you know that you think may be color deficient? Many patients aren’t aware of their condition because they have had it since birth. But many early learning tests rely on color coordination or perception. This is another supporting reason the American Optometric Association recommends that all children have a comprehensive eye exam before beginning school.
There is no cure for color deficiency, but those who are affected may learn their world a little bit differently. For example, instead of remembering that red means stop on a stoplight, they may remember that the top or left-handed light means stop. Thankfully, CVD rarely poses a serious threat to vision and patients can fully adapt.
Dr. Kennedy Neukam is an optometrist at Little Eyes Pediatric Eye Care in Carmel and Fishers.
