Colour contrast sensitivity in eyes at high risk of neovascular age-related macular degeneration

PURPOSE: To generate the first published reference database of colour contrast sensitivity in eyes at high risk of neovascular age-related macular degeneration and to explore this important feature in quality of vision. BACKGROUND: Quality of vision depends on many factors. Changes in chromatic contrast sensitivity remain largely unexplored in eyes at high risk of neovascular age-related macular degeneration; they may however not only be relevant for quality of life but also an early indicator of the onset of the disease, so it is important to have a means to evaluate any variation in colour contrast sensitivity, especially in view of the likely increase in neovascular age-related macular degeneration as the population ages. METHODS: This prospective longitudinal study evaluated colour contrast sensitivity along the protan and tritan colour axes in 145 eyes at high risk of neovascular age-related macular degeneration. RESULTS: Colour contrast sensitivity showed statistically significant correlations with age and visual acuity, but not gender nor laterality (i.e. whether the right or left eye was being tested). There was significant variability among individuals, especially for the tritan axis, with some subjects well within normal limits for age and others with very poor colour contrast sensitivity. CONCLUSION: This study has generated the first published colour contrast sensitivity reference database for eyes at high risk of neovascular age-related macular degeneration. It has also shown a high inter-individual variability of colour contrast sensitivity in eyes at high risk of neovascular age-related macular degeneration, but the significance of this is unclear. Further work is required to establish if eyes with high colour contrast sensitivity thresholds (i.e. poor colour vision) have a higher risk of developing neovascular age-related macular degeneration over time, and this is the subject of ongoing work.