Heredity and Some Common Genetic Diseases: Colour Blindness

Colour Blindness: Colour blindness is simply an inability to identify specific colours, such as blue, green, and red. It is a genetic disease in which an individual has difficulty distinguishing between colours and shades. This syndrome is also known as a colour vision problem or deficiency.

In 1798, an English chemist named John Dalton discovered colour blindness. During his discovery, he was colourblind, so he wrote and published his first article about colour blindness based on his own experience. Colour blindness, also known as Daltonism, is named after its discoverer, John Dalton. Continue reading the article to undersatnd more about sex-linked genes, i.e. colour blindness.

Types of Colour Blindness

The following are the different types of colour blindness:

• Monochromacy
• Dichromacy
• Deuteranopia (Green Color Blindness)
• Tritanopia (Blue Colour Blindness)
• Trichromatism

Monochromacy: When two or three types of cone pigments are absent or damaged, in this type of colour blindness, the colour and lightness vision is reduced to one dimension. This results in total colour blindness.

Dichromacy: When only one of the cone pigments is absent or damaged, in this type of colour blindness, only the colour vision is reduced to two dimensions. This results in partial colour blindness.

Deuteranopia (Green Color Blindness): When someone has this particular problem, a mixture of green and red colours is presented to that person, and that person will be unable to distinguish between those colours.

Tritanopia (Blue Colour Blindness): Tritanopia is characterised by a lack of blue cone cells and the inability to distinguish between yellow and blue colours. This type of blindness is extremely uncommon.

Trichromatism: Trichromatism is a type of colour blindness in which all three types of cells function as light and colour perceivers. There used to be a shift in the wavelength sensitivity of one of those colours.

Causes of Colour Blindness

The following are the reasons responsible for colour blindness:

• Damage is caused to the brain or eye, or nerve cells.
• Genetic disorders.
• Side effects of drugs.
• Use of tobacco and alcohol.

Symptoms of Colour Blindness

the following are the various symptoms that can help candidates detect colour blindness:

• Rapid eye movement.
• Sensitivity towards a bright light.
• The trouble with the brightness of colours and seeing colours.
• The problem is identifying the differences between colours and shades.

Diagnosis Of Colour Blindness

the following are the differential diagnosis of colour blindness:

Ishihara Plate Test

Certain tests are available to diagnose and measure a patient’s colour vision deficiency. The Ishihara Plate Test allows doctors to diagnose colour blindness quickly.

A colour vision screening test is most commonly used for routine colour vision screening. This can be found in all eye clinics and schools. There are a total of 38 circles created by irregular coloured dots using two or more colours. Patients are asked to identify a number on a plate during this diagnosis.

Screening Test

This test is primarily used to detect and classify the type and severity of colour blindness.

Treatment for Colour Blindness

There is currently no treatment for this syndrome. Photographic frames or filters and eyeglasses with contact lenses can be used to improve the dimension between some colours. A well-balanced diet can help to alleviate the symptoms of colour blindness.

Patients with colour blindness face numerous challenges in their daily lives. They may have difficulty selecting fresh vegetables, fruits, flowers, differentiating pulses, driving a car, selecting clothes, and many other tasks. Red and green colour blindness are the most common types of inherited colour blindness. According to studies and medical records, men are more prone to red and green colour blindness than women. Blue colour blindness affects both men and women.

Facts About Colour Blindness

The following are some interesting facts about colour blindness:

Fact 1: Use of tobacco, alcohol consumption, drug side effects, damage or injury to the brain, eye, or nerve cells, and other inherited disorders may all be factored into this genetic disorder.

Fact 2: According to studies and medical records, red and green colour blindness is the most common type of inherited colour blindness.

Fact 3: The Ishihara Plate test is one of the most commonly used by doctors to diagnose colour blindness disorder.

Fact 4: Colour blindness is a chromosomal disorder that affects the X chromosome. It is a genetic disorder that primarily affects the masculine gender.

Fact 5: Colour blindness is not an eye condition. It is a hereditary disorder that is passed down from mother to son via the 23rd or sex chromosome.

Fact 6: Newborn babies are colourblind because they can only see black and white. Their colour vision gradually improves, and by the age of 6 to 7 months, they can see and enjoy attractive colours.

Fact 7: Colourblind patients face numerous challenges in their daily lives. They may have difficulty distinguishing between pulses, driving a car, choosing clothes, and much more.

Fact 8: This genetic disorder has no complete cure. There are some specially designed lenses and glasses that work well and assist patients in identifying the correct colour shades.

Fact 9: Males are more likely than females to suffer from blindness. This is primarily due to the fact that the colour vision deficiency is encoded on the X chromosome.

Fact 10: Individuals with monochromacy colour blindness have difficulty identifying colours such as red, blue, and green, resulting in total colour blindness. On the other hand, individuals with dichromacy colour blindness will have difficulty identifying colours such as blue and yellow, resulting in limited colour vision.

We hope the above article has answered all your doubts and queries. Embibe wishes you good luck and all the best.

Stay tuned to Embibe for the latest updates.