Using Clinical Tests of Colour Vision to Predict the Ability of Colour Vision Deficient Patients to Name Surface Colours

The article I chose was called “Using clinical tests of colour vision to predict the ability of colour vision deficient patients to name surface colours.” The researchers of this article were Barry L. Cole, Ka-Yee Lian, and Carol Lakkis. I chose this article for many different reasons. First, I have always been fascinated about color abnormalities. Secondly, my uncle was born color blind, but his wife would always ask him “what color is this?” Of course he did not get the colors right and would feel frustrated at himself because he did not know what color of objects. Thirdly, I found it interesting when reading this article because it stated that optometrists had to tell their clients if they would be able to do their jobs or not since some jobs used color as a main focus. For example optometrists had to determine if their clients would be able to see and read the color scheme associated with construction work or even air traffic communication.

The purpose of this research was “to determine the predictive power of commonly used tests for abnormal color vision to identify patients who can or cannot name surface colors without error.” There were a total of 99 individuals who had a color deficiency and a control group of 20. These participants were tested using the different types of tests which included the Ishihara test, the Richmond HRR test, the Medmont C100 test, the Farnsworth D15 test and the Type 1 Nagel anomaloscope test. The participants were then asked to name ten surface colors that were in two different shapes with three different sizes.  

The control group did not make any errors, however those who had a color deficiency made a 37% error. It was found that fewer errors were made with the larger sized objects than with the smaller sized objects. For those who were considered “mild” on the Richmond HRR test were able to tell the colors of ten different color codes. About 60% of those who passed the Farnsworth D15 test made no errors naming the ten different color schemes. Ultimately, these results can help optometrists make the important decision to let their clients work in a specific field or not.  

Source:

Cole, B.L., Lian, K., & Lakkis, C. (2007). Using clinical tests of colour vision to predict the ability of colour vision deficient patients to name surface colours. Ophthalmology Physiology Optometry 27, 381–388.