How will an eye care provider diagnose my color blindness?

How will an eye care provider diagnose my color blindness?

If you suspect that you or your child may have trouble perceiving particular colors, your eye care provider will perform a thorough eye exam and then show you an eye chart to determine how you see certain colors.

The first test for color vision deficiency was developed by Japanese ophthalmologist Ishihara Shinobu for military use in 1918. Today, the Ishihara test is still the primary test used to determine if you have red-green or blue-yellow color deficiency. You or your child will be shown a set of Ishihara color plates. For example, to test for red-green color blindness each plate has a red or green number hidden within a set of dots. If you can’t see the figure, you have tested positive for red-green color deficiency. There’s also a set of Ishihara plates with blue or yellow figures hidden within a set of dots. If you can’t see the blue or yellow figure, you’ve tested positive for blue-yellow color blindness.