Color Vision/Enchroma

Color-blind and color-deficient. Both of these terms are used to describe people who have difficulty distinguishing between different colors and do not, as many people mistakenly believe, simply see everything in black, white and grey. The vast majority of patients who are deemed to have color deficiency struggle to differentiate between shades of green and red. This can make some aspects of life very difficult. For example, traffic lights use red for top and green for go. Not being able to tell the difference between the two can be not just inconvenient but downright dangerous.

Where once there were no options to correct the vision of patients suffering from color deficiency, there is now a solution that can enable you to experience life from a more colorful perspective. This solution is known as Enchroma. We are delighted to be able to offer Enchroma color vision glasses here at our clinic in Shalimar, FL.

What Causes Color Deficiency?

Color deficiency is largely an inherited condition, so if you have a close blood relative who has experienced this issue, they may have passed it on to you, or if you yourself go on to have children, there is a significant chance that they too will be color deficient. It is more common in males, with around 8% of males experiencing some degree of color deficiency compared to around just 1% of females.

There are also certain other factors that can influence the development of color deficiency including suffering from Parkinson’s disease, having cataracts and taking certain medications. Color deficiency can also be triggered by the natural aging process damaging retinal cells so that they do not process the light as effectively.

How do Enchroma Glasses Work?

In order to understand how Enchroma glasses work, it is first necessary to understand how we see color in the first place. When we look at anything, light enters our eyes and hits the retina, which is located at the back of our eye. All light contains an entire spectrum of different colors, each with its own wavelength. In fact, the human eye is capable of visualizing up to 100 million different shades of colors. The retina contains special cells, called photoreceptors, that are sensitive to different parts of the visible spectrum of light: red, green and blue. The majority of cases of color deficiency occur when the sensitivities for a red and green shift, causing a large overlap that makes it difficult to differentiate between them. This is sometimes known as red-green color deficiency. It is for this type of color-blindness that Enchroma glasses can help.

Enchroma glasses work by selectively filtering out wavelengths of light at the exact point when the color sensitivities overlap and cause confusion. In doing this, there is a much sharper contrast between red and green, making it possible for the patient to discern many different shades between them. As such, the symptoms of color deficiency are dramatically reduced, enabling the patient to enjoy far greater vibrancy in their vision.

If you would like more information on color deficiency or Enchroma glasses, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our experienced eye care team at Shalimar Eye Care in Shalimar, FL who will be happy to answer your queries or schedule you an appointment 850-613-6588.