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Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staffYou may have poor color vision and not know it. You also may not suspect the condition in your child until a situation causes confusion or misunderstanding — such as encountering a traffic light or trying to interpret color-coded learning materials.
People affected by poor color vision may not be able to distinguish:
- Different shades of red and green
- Different shades of blue and yellow
- Any colors at all
The most common color deficiency is an inability to see some shades of red and green. Often, a person who is red-green or blue-yellow deficient isn't completely insensitive to both colors. Defects can be mild, moderate or severe. Someone with red-green or blue-yellow deficiency may not be able to differentiate the colors of a rainbow or recognize a rose-colored sky at sunrise or sunset.
Also, people with poor color vision may not be able to properly name different colors. For example, their "green" may be what normal-sighted people call "yellow." That's because they've always heard that leaves are green, so they interpret the yellow leaves they see as "green."
When to see a doctor
If you suspect that your color vision isn't satisfactory, you should see an eye doctor for testing. Also, if you have a child who's having a preschool eye exam, it's a good idea to make sure your child is tested for color vision as well as for visual acuity. Even though there's no treatment for inherited poor color vision, have your child's eyes examined if you suspect your child has poor color vision. If the cause is an eye illness, treating that illness may improve color vision.
- Color vision deficiency. Genetics home reference. http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition=colorvisiondeficiency. Accessed Nov. 22, 2008.
- Color vision deficiency. American Optometric Association. http://www.aoa.org/x4702.xml?prt. Accessed Nov. 25, 2008.
- Gobba F. Color vision impairment in workers exposed to neurotoxic chemicals. NeuroToxicology. 2003;24:693.
- Color vision. In: Ganong WF. Review of Medical Physiology. 22nd ed. San Francisco, Calif.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2005. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=707965&searchStr=color+vision+defect. Accessed Jan. 12, 2009.
