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What is color blindness?

What is color blindness?

14 June 2024

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Color blindness, also known as color vision deficiency, is a visual condition in which a person has difficulty distinguishing certain colors. This condition affects millions of people around the world and varies in severity. Knowing its causes, types and possible solutions is essential to understand and support those who suffer from it.

Color blindness is a vision anomaly that prevents us from perceiving colors normally. The colors that a colorblind person has the most difficulty distinguishing are red, green and, to a lesser extent, blue and yellow. This condition occurs when the retinal cones, which are the cells responsible for color perception, do not function properly or are missing.

Types of color blindness

1. Red-green color blindness:

  • Deuteranomaly: difficulty distinguishing green tones. Is the most usual way.
  • Deuteranopia: total inability to perceive the color green.
  • Protanomaly: difficulty distinguishing red tones.
  • Protanopia: total inability to perceive the color red.

2. Blue-yellow color blindness:

  • Tritanomaly: difficulty distinguishing blue tones.
  • Tritanopia: total inability to perceive the color blue.

3. Total color blindness (Monochromatism):

  • Cone monochromatism: the person sees everything in shades of gray.
  • Rod monochromatism: known as achromatopsia, where no colors are perceived at all, only shades of gray.

Causes of color blindness

The main cause of color blindness is genetic. This condition is generally hereditary and is transmitted through the X chromosome. This is why color blindness is more common in men than in women. However, color blindness can also be acquired through:

  • Eye diseases such as glaucoma or macular degeneration.
  • Eye or brain injuries.
  • Damage caused by certain chemicals.

Diagnosis of color blindness

Color blindness is diagnosed through specific color vision tests. The most used is the Ishihara Test, which consists of a series of images with dots of different colors forming numbers or shapes. People with normal color vision can see these shapes clearly, while people with color blindness cannot. Other tests include the Farnsworth-Munsell 100 Hue Test and the Anomaloscope Test.

Today, color blindness has no cure, but there are various options and strategies that can help affected people manage and compensate for this condition. Specialized corrective lenses, applications and software for color identification, and adjustments in the educational and work environment are some of the tools available. Additionally, education and awareness about color blindness can significantly improve the quality of life of those who suffer from it, allowing them to participate fully in all areas of their daily and professional lives.

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