Color vision defects in ocular hypertension and glaucoma. Quantification with a computer-driven color television system
K. Gunduz, G. B. Arden, S. Perry, G. W. Weinstein and R. A. Hitchings
Department of Clinical Ophthalmology, Moorfields Eye Hospital, London, England.
In order to detect early defects of color vision caused by increased
intraocular pressure, a computer graphics device and color monitor system
were used to measure color contrast sensitivity. The system determines the
threshold chrominance of a colored grating in which there is no change in
luminance. The study included 13 control subjects aged 10 to 57 years and
19 patients with ocular hypertension or glaucoma aged 20 to 58 years. In
the 13 eyes with visual field loss, color contrast sensitivity was
profoundly reduced when the grating colors fell on a tritan color confusion
line. In the eyes without visual field loss, tritan color contrast
sensitivity was reduced to an average level considerably below the extreme
limits of the control group. These results were compared with those of
other color vision tests and diagnostic criteria for glaucoma. The findings
suggest that among the tests used, color contrast sensitivity testing was
able to discriminate most effectively between patients who had retinal
damage and the normal population.
