Colorblind, colorblind, colorblindness,color blind,color vision, vision
screening, color deficient, eye test,
are three articles published on the subject of colorblindness. The first article
is in the
Journal of the American Academy of Optometry. It evaluates and
validates a new pediatric color vision test. The other two articles are
in the Journal of the American Optometric Association and tell how the new
color vision test can be used to test for color deficiencies in the population
of mentally handicapped patients.
of a new Color Vision Test:
"Color Vision Testing Made Easy"
Summary of Journal American Academy of Optometry ,
vol. 76, no. 9, Sept. 1999 article.
By Susan A. Cotter, O.D., David Y. Lee, O.D., Ph.D., Alan L. French,
PURPOSE: Pseudoisochromatic plate tests such as the Ishihara
and Dvorine, while very effective in screening for red green color deficiencies
in adults, have limited effectiveness for young children. At present,
there is no color vision test that is appropriate for children 3-6 years
old that has good validity, is inexpensive, allows rapid assessment, and
is commercially available. A new pseudoisochromatic color plate test specifically
designed for young children, "Color Vision Testing Made Easy"
(CVTME) has recently been introduced. Because of our interest
in finding a suitable test that can be used to screen young children
for color deficiencies, we evaluated this test's validity.
METHODS: Forty one subjects were predetermined to be color normal
(n=20) or have hereditary color deficiency (n=21). A battery of color vision
tests including the Ishihara, Panel D-15, and the anomaloscope were used
for the diagnosis and classification of color deficiency. Each subject was
then tested using the new pediatric color vision test, CVTME.
RESULTS: All 20 color normal subjects passed and 19 of
21 color deficient subjects failed CVTME. None of the deuteranopic, protanopic,
and protanomalous subjects correctly identified any of the CVTME test plates.
Five of seven deuteranomalous subjects failed CVTME. The two subjects who
passed CVTME also passed the Ishihara and the Panel D-15. The two subjects
had the mildest color deficiency (simple deuteranomaly) as evidenced by
DISCUSSION: The simple design of both parts of CVTME is excellent
for young children. Most children by the age of 3 years
identify and name a circle, square, and star. For children who can not or
will not respond verbally, one can use the black and white replicas or colored
demonstration plate to make the task one of matching.
Additionally, the selection of Part II
boat, balloon) together with the demonstration replicas, allows most children
3 years of age or older to be easily tested. Verbal identification, drawing
over the figure, or selecting the matching demonstration replica can be used.
The three plates of Part II allows for rapid assessment which is critical
considering a young child's limited attention span. In addition, it should
facilitate color vision screening on a large scale.
CONCLUSION: Results of this validation study indicate
that CVTME has a high degree of efficacy as a color vision test. CVTME was
100% compatible with the Ishihara with the same specificity and sensitivity.
There were no false positives. The response patterns of normal and color
deficient children were very clear-cut so that a diagnosis was easy and made
with a high degree of confidence.
Note: A copy of the complete study can be obtained by contacting
Professor Susan Cotter, Southern California College of Optometry, 2575 Yorba
Linda Blvd., Fullerton, CA 92631 USA (The authors have no financial interest
in this product) or by referencing "Evaluation of a New Color
Vision Test: Color Vision Testing Made Easy" in the Journal of the American
Academy of Optometry, vol. 76, no. 9, Sept. 1999.
"Testablility of a Color Vision Screening
Test in a Population with Mental Retardation"
Summary of the Journal of the American Optometric
Association Vol. 70, #12, Dec. 1999 article.
By Graham B. Erickson, O.D., F.A.A.O., F.C.O.V.D. and Sandra S.
Block, O.D., F.A.A.O.
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine if
the new validated color vision test "Color Vision Testing Made Easy" would
be an effective means to screen for color vision deficiencies in
a population of individuals with mental retardation.
METHODS: "Color Vision Testing Made Easy" was administered as
part of the vision screening sponsored by the American Optometric Association
Sports Vision Section and Special Olympics International. The test was presented
to Special Olympic Athletes, who are individuals with mental retardation
or significant developmental delay, at four international sites:
the world Winter Games in Toronto, Canada; the Regional European
Swim Competition in Seville, Spain; and the Summer Games in Houston, Texas
and Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Nine test plates were presented sequentially, and at least 3 seconds
were allowed per plate for the athlete to "find the circle". To pass the
screening, the athlete
correctly locate the circle on eight of the nine plates on the first trial.
If fewer than eight correct responses were given, a second trial was conducted.
To pass on the second attempt, the athlete was required to localize the circle
on all nine test plates.
RESULTS: The overall rate of testability was
93.2% for the 1078 athletes screened. The frequency of individuals
identified as color deficient (7.5% of the males and 0.6% of the
females) was similar to that expected in the general population.
DISCUSSION: Until recently, commercially available color vision
tests were not highly effective for screening young children, and therefore
also presented problems for the mentally handicapped. The problem reported
when using standard tests like the D-15, AO HRR, Ishihara Test, Dvorine
Plates, and Anomaloscope to test mentally handicapped patients was a high
level of false-positives (to many patients incorrectly identified as
The primary difficulty for each of these color vision tests with mentally
handicapped patients was trouble understanding the task required (e.g.,
understanding how to arrange the colored caps in the D-15 test).
The athletes tested using "Color Vision Testing Made Easy" during the
world games in Canada represented many countries in which the primary language
was not English. More than 95% of the athletes, however,
were able to sufficiently understand the task
required to complete the test. The testability was the same
at the Regional European Swim Competition in Spain (95.7%), and even higher
in the USA at the Houston, Texas games (98.7%).
CONCLUSION: The color vision test
"Color Vision Testing Made Easy" was
completed by a very high percentage of Special Olympic Athletes. The results
showed that the test was useful in screening this population for color vision
deficiencies, and that the prevalence of color vision deficiencies was similar
to the prevalence found in the general population.
Note: A copy of the complete study or literary references can
be obtained by contacting Dr. Graham Erickson, Pacific University College
of Optometry, 2043 College Way, Forest Grove, OR 97116 or reading the Journal
of the American Optometric Association Article "Testability of a Color Vision
Screening Test in a Population with Mental Retardation" Volume 70, Number
12, December 1999. The authors have no financial interest in this
Dr. Terrace Waggoner, the designer of the new test, e-mail address
"Color vision screening for individuals with
intellectual disabilities: A comparison between the Neitz Test of Color
Vision and Color Vision Testing Made Easy".
Abstract of the Journal of the American Optometric
Association Optometry (2006) 77,211-216
Carmen Barnhardt, O.D., M.S., Sandra S.
Block, O.D., M.Ed., Beth Deemer, O.D., Amy Jo Calder, O.D., and Paul Deland,
BackGround: The Neitz Test of Color Vision (Neitz)
and Color Vision Testing Made Easy (CVTME) were compared to determine which
test was more effective in evaluating patients with intellectual disability
(i.e., mental retardation) and developmental delay.
Methods: Two hundred eight Special Olympics
floor hockey athletes were screened in San Diego, California, and 93
athletes were screened in Long Beach, California for a total of 301
athletes. Each athlete was adminstered the CVTME and the Neitz tests.
Results: The pass rate for the CVTME was
94.6% (n=93) at Long Beach and 96.2% (n=208) at San Diego. Every athlete was
able to complete the CVTME. The pass rate for the Neitz was 38.7% at Long
Beach and 56.7% at San Diego. Additionally, 10.8% of the Long Beach athletes
and 12.5% of the San Diego athletes were unable to understand the Neitz.
In addition, there was a low level of agreement between the results from the
2 tests with kapp = 0.081 for the San Diego data and 0.028 for the Long
Conclusion: This study suggests that Color Vision
Testing Made Easy continues to be the screening test of choice in
evaluating color vision in individuals with intellectual disability. The
Neitz had more failing scores on the first attempt and more total
failing scores leading to over-referrals, making it an inappropriate
screening test for individuals with intellectual disability and
Note: A copy of the complete study or literary
references can be obtained by contacting Carmen Barnhardt, O.D., M.S.
2575 Yorba Linda Blvd., Fullerton, California 92831 email
The authors have no financial interest in this
Dr. Terrace Waggoner, the designer of the new test, e-mail address
(Why are you colorblind)
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