SAIFUL RIJAL YUNUS

Fardan Ramadhan (9), when met in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi. Fardan has an eye pigment disorder, or heterochromia iridis which causes his eyes to turn blue.

IGK Bela Laskar Tenggara (30) is a patient with partial color blindness. It is difficult to distinguish between green and red. This condition had actually occurred since birth, but he only found out when he graduated from high school, when he made a health certificate and was free from color blindness.

“Before, I didn’t know at all. If you look at the colors one by one, it can be distinguished. It’s just that it’s difficult to tell the difference if you put it side by side with similar colors,” said Bela, who currently lives in Jembrana, Bali.

So far, Bela’s partial color blindness does not seem to interfere with her daily activities. As someone who works in the construction sector, this does not significantly affect his work. It’s just that, when doing work related to electrical wires, which sometimes have red and green colors, Bela has to ask for help from others.

Meanwhile, when on the streets, his color blindness doesn’t bother him either. He is used to the red and green colors at traffic lights. “You already know where it is. Red above and green below, or red on the left and green on the right,” said Bela.

Also read: Impaired retinal function can trigger blindness

A Neuro-Ophthalmologist at Cicendo National Eye Center Hospital Bandung, Antonia Kartika Indriati contacted in Jakarta, Tuesday (5/9/2023) said that generally a person does not understand or is not aware that he has color blindness. This is because they usually automatically adapt to the existing colors. Generally, this occurs in someone who has partial color blindness from birth or congenital color blindness.

FAKHRI FADLURROHMAN

One of the terrorist detainees took part in an eye health examination at the Polda Metro Jaya Drug Detention Center, Jakarta, Wednesday (29/3/2023).

However, when faced with colors that have certain gradations, people with partial color blindness will find it difficult to distinguish. That’s why, when carrying out a color blind test, their ability to distinguish colors arranged with certain gradations will be reduced.

“So the composition of the red color seen by people with partial color blindness is different from people who are not color blind,” said Antonia who is also the Main Director of the Cicendo National Eye Center Hospital in Bandung.

Normally, humans have three cone cells whose role is to provide vision in red, green, and blue. Partial color blindness occurs when one of the cone cells in the eye is abnormal. There are three types of partial color blindness, namely red color blindness, green color blindness, and blue color blindness. The majority of types of color blindness encountered are red-green color blindness.

Prevalence

The worldwide prevalence of color blindness is around 2-5 percent. There is no recent prevalence of color blindness in Indonesia. In 2007, Basic Health Research data showed that the incidence of color blindness in Indonesia was around 0.7 percent. However, referring to the results of a study conducted by the Cicendo National Eye Center Hospital in 2017-2021, out of 358 patients who experienced congenital color blindness, 99 percent experienced partial color blindness. Of that number, 94 percent were male.

Normally, humans have three cone cells whose role is to provide vision in red, green, and blue. Partial color blindness occurs when one of the cone cells in the eye is abnormal.

Antonia said that color blindness is more common in men. This is because color blindness is related to a genetic disorder of the X chromosome. In women, usually they only carry genes related to color blindness.

KOMPAS/TOTOK WIJAYANTO

A student had his eye health checked while taking part in the diphtheria tetanus (Dt) immunization which was held by the Rawa Bunga Health Center, Jatinegara, East Jakarta, Wednesday (29/9/2021). This activity was held in the context of school children’s immunization month.

He said inherited color blindness or congenital color blindness could not be cured so that the disorder would persist. However, it is different from secondary partial color blindness which appears after birth or as an adult. This color blindness can occur as a result of certain diseases that result in damage to the optic nerve system and retina. It’s like a nervous breakdown, diabetes mellitus, or due to taking certain drugs that are not according to doctor’s recommendations.

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“Color blindness can also occur as a result of consuming counterfeit alcohol or mixed alcohol drinks. Consuming counterfeit alcohol mixed with industrial alcohol can attack the nerves in the eyes, causing color blindness,” said Antonia.

In someone who experiences color blindness due to illness or the effects of consuming drugs or alcohol, it can be cured by treating the disease or disorder that is experienced. Currently, there are also red lenses that can be aimed at patients with partial color blindness. However, these lenses are generic, while the color blindness experienced by each patient can vary.

Separately, an ophthalmologist at Pondok Indah-Pondok Indah Hospital, Sesaria Rizky Kumalasari said, color blindness that is not congenital at birth can also occur due to certain diseases, such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, leukemia, and also patients with who are taking the autoimmune drug hydroxychloroquine.

COMPASS/MOHAMMAD HILMI FAIQ

Eye health is important to maintain, especially for those who use contact lenses in their daily activities.

Unlike congenital color blindness which is not progressive, acquired color blindness due to certain conditions is progressive. If color blindness occurs due to certain diseases, you should immediately consult an ophthalmologist so that you can immediately get specific treatment related to the disease you are experiencing.

Sesaria added, apart from partial color blindness, there is also total color blindness which is also noteworthy. Total color blindness occurs when a person has only one type of cone cell in the eye. In these conditions, it will be difficult for someone to distinguish between the basic color or the color gradation. However, cases of total color blindness are very rare. “In people with total color blindness, he can only distinguish black and white,” he said.

Also read: Beware of the Appearance of Shadows in Vision

Color blindness is indeed considered not too disturbing for some sufferers. However, not a few are ultimately disappointed because they cannot carry out their dream activities or jobs due to their color blindness.

For this reason, screening for color blindness should be done early so that the handling and adjustment of color blind conditions can be carried out optimally. It is also hoped that World Color Blind Day, which is celebrated every September 6, can raise awareness of one of these visual impairments.

2023-09-06 01:48:26
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