In order to record your ability to distinguish colors from one another, you can take a color vision test, which is a routine eye test. If you do not pass this exam, you may have a form of color blindness. As this is just a screening test, we can pick up color blindness but can't determining the severity of it. More than 100 years ago, a Japanese ophthalmologist, called Shinobu Ishihara developed this test. It consists of many different "plates" or circular images. This test can easily pick up the most common color vision deficiency; red-green color blindness. Each plate consists of many different dots varying in brightness, size and color. A hiding visible number will be seen by someone who has normal color vision. Someone who has red-green color blindness will see a random pattern or completely different number instead. The complete test contains 38 plates, although there is a shorter version. If you already wear prescription glasses, you will have to wear them while completing this test as it is conducted under normal room lighting. In order to determine the severity of your color blindness, you will need to take a Farnsworth-Munsell 100 Hue Test. Everybody should take a color vision test at least once in their lives.
Color blindness usually is hereditary and there is no cure. You are more likely to have color blindness if you have diseases such as glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease or diabetes. Because of cataracts due to age, your color blindness may get worse. Even the simplest everyday activities may become hard to do, for example preparing and selecting food, gardening, playing certain sports and driving a car. Most people with red-green color blindness may not know if they have cooked a piece of meat well done or rare; or might not be able to distinguish between green or ripe fruits and vegetables. Because electronic goods generally have green, red or orange LED lights as indicators, these could also be very frustrating to utilize. Color blindness may also cause safety issues in certain industries; such as the transport and armed forces industries.
For most color vision conditions, there is no treatment, unless it is related to medications you are consuming. Colored contact lenses or a color filter worn over your glasses may be used to treat your color blindness, although this will not improve your color vision disorder.