Tips and advice for
the colour blind doctor
General
advice
1. Do not deny you
have abnormal colour vision. Get a diagnosis of your colour vision deficiency
and find out whether it is mild or severe.
2. Make yourself aware of the
difficulties you may encounter in discriminating, naming and matching colours
and the situations in which this happens. This is a learning process that takes
time, advice and experience.
3. The difficulties you can encounter will
include: seeing skin redness, pallor, cyanosis and jaundice; seeing pallor of
the optic disc and distinguishing retinal hemorrhages; seeing blood in stool and
vomit, interpreting colour-coded information from instruments, and work in the
laboratory including the use of staining techniques in histology and
bacteriology.Go to the Picture gallery to see
examples of the problems colour blind doctors can experience.
4. There
are ways of compensating. Doctors have reported the following: giving extra time
and care to the examination of the patient; giving special attention to the
history obtained from the patient; checking your examination with special
investigations; and accepting help from others (ref
47). Using dark/light differences as a cue to colour can also help in
certain situations, and using a coloured filter, for example in ophthalmoscopy,
can help to identify retinal hemorrhages. Good lighting is also important:
daylight fluorescent tubes should be used, not warm-white ones, and not tungsten
bulbs.
5. Recognise that these methods of compensating cannot be expected
to work in all cases. For example, the doctor may fail to detect a rash or blood
in a body product by the normal process of observation. These signs are
sometimes pivotal, that is, if they go unobserved the wrong course of action can
be adopted with harm to the patient (ref 14). It is
the unexpected sign in particular that may go unobserved.
6. When you
enter medical school you should tell the occupational health physician and your
tutors that you have a colour vision deficiency. When deciding on a specialty
discuss your decision with someone experienced in that specialty.
7. Not
everyone practising or teaching medicine is aware of the effects of colour
vision deficiency in medicine. Do not accept advice from those who are not alert
to the possibilities or not prepared to listen.
8. If you are already
working in a specialty you might think that you should change to another that is
more suitable in view of your colour vision deficiency. Experience and advice
will help you make that decision.
*Coloured
pencils* (pack of 12) with the name of the colour on each can be of help. They
can be obtained at "Personalised Gift Ideas Ltd." Telephone: 01294 3122777.
E-mail: enquiries@personalisedgiftideas.co.uk
Advice
regarding specialties
This
advice is not claimed to be complete and circumstances may sometimes alter its


relevance.
Primary
care may not be an
ideal choice. Colour is an important sign for general practitioners and several
factors can lead to difficulties. GPs sometimes work alone, particularly when
visiting in the home, where there will not be help from others. In addition,
they will encounter a wide range of presentations and will not always have
control over the conditions of observation, for example, when there is poor
illumination.
Paediatrics presents
similar problems and it must be realised that skin rashes and the red drum of
otitis media are common. Visualising the small drum of the infant to identify
redness can be particularly difficult.
Pathology uses
coloured stains in histology and microbiology to reveal cells and organisms can
pose problems for a colour vision deficient pathologist. However, alternative
staining techniques can sometimes be used and asking help from others may avoid
problems. Performing a post-mortem examination may present a
problem.
Anaesthetists find that
colour blindness does not present a problem when modern technology is used.
Pulse oximetry, for example, solves the problem of detecting cyanosis (ref 29).
Ear, nose and
throat surgeons have to detect
signs of inflammation, which may present a problem to the colour blind. One
surgeon wrote that “the subtle changes of blue/pink/red, particularly the
flamingo pink of Schwartz (in otosclerosis) would be difficult to distinguish if
colour blind” (ref 26). This is a rare condition,
but otitis media and otitis externa are common (refs
25, 40).
Dermatology may not
present as many problems as might be expected, probably because lesions are
often large and textured; however, faint macular rashes and rashes in racially
pigmented skin are likely to cause difficulties (ref
43).
Ophthalmology requires
small retinal haemorrhages to be seen and distinguished from small melanin
spots. It also requires evaluation of the pallor or redness of the optic nerve
head as well as observing inflammation of the conjunctiva and skin of the lids.
General ophthalmology is probably better avoided by those with a severe colour
vision deficiency but may not be so much of a problem in surgical ophthalmology.
Protans (with a red deficiency) will have the further problem that a filter will
not help them in distinguishing melanin spots from haemorrhages in the
retina.
In obstetrics and
gynaecology the detection of
fresh blood can be important as a sign. For example, postnatally, red instead of
brown loquia suggests retained products.
In endoscopy there is
some evidence that there can be difficulties in observing certain abnormalities
(ref 33, 55, 56). Colour plays a major role, particularly in
observing flat red lesions. Doctors have reported difficulties in making this
type of observation and some studies have confirmed this (ref 56).
In surgery little
information is available about problems due to abnormal colour vision. One
doctor wrote that during surgical procedures he had great difficulty discerning
where muscle fibres ended and tendon fibres began, and that the same thing
applied to other structures and concluded that he was not suited to a career in
surgery (ref 58). A Plastic and Hand
Surgeon informed this website that one difficulty was that he had seeing the red
laser point of the mobile C-arm x-ray machine against the green surgical drapes
in theatre - solved by blue drapes, or a colour seeing registrar. The comments
of surgeons would be welcomed.
Neurology. A
neurologist with colour vision deficiency claimed that neurology was “a great
choice” for a doctor with colour vision deficiency (ref
23). But another neurologist reported that due to his deficiency he found
difficulty observing Kayser-Fleischer rings (personal communication; 2009
Professor Andrew Lees). These rings are found at the outer edge of the cornea
and indicate Wilson’s disease. As they appear either green or brown the
difficulty is not unexpected.


俞自萍色觉研究与应用
【成果完成人】
俞自萍;曹愈;曹凯
【第一完成单位】
江苏省人民医院
【关键词】
色觉缺陷/诊断;色觉试验/方法
【中图分类号】
R770.423
【学科分类号】
320.37
【成果简介】
色觉是人类认识事物和工作学习的重要视觉功能之一。
在交通、医学、绘画、化学、纺织、彩印、资讯等职业中,均需正确辨认颜色,先天性色觉障碍者,则不能从事上述有关职业或工程,以免发生危险。研究以色觉理论为基础,1954～1987年经6750名镇江市中小学生、187例视神经与黄斑疾病、252例眼底病患者色觉异常流行病学调查基础上,1958年绘制并出版了有中华民族特色的假同色《色盲检查图》,几经改版后,现该图可正确诊断先天性和后天性色觉异常,并试将色觉异常分为重级(红绿色盲)、次重级(红色盲或绿色盲)、轻......[详细]
【成果类别】
应用技术
【成果水平】
【研究起止时间】
1952-01～2001-12
【评价形式】
【成果入库时间】
2009
这些都是历史的罪人！！！！

1
泪道穿线疗法
俞自萍,王育鸿
江苏医药
2
1031人中青光眼调查分析(摘要)
俞自萍; 童文秋; 祝芷; 王育鸿; 曹凯; 王英; 许树海;
南京医学院学报
3
116名正常人眼球压迫试验调查的正常值报告
俞自萍,祝芷,陈永汉,曹凯,王英
江苏医药
4
2030名正常人眼内压调查分析
王育鸿,童文秋,祝芷,陈永汉,曹凯,方桂英,王英,黄国英,俞自萍
江苏医药
5
正常人角膜直径、前房深度及视神经乳头杯盘比调查统计
童文秋; 祝芷; 王育鸿; 陈永汉; 方桂英; 曹凯; 俞自萍;
南京医学院学报
6
眼球(壁)硬度的一个新函数
俞自萍,曹凯,曹愈
眼科新进展
7
全上睑切除后的睑成形术
俞自萍
眼科新进展
8
长期保存角膜的生化及组织检查
俞自萍;
眼科新进展
9
Stargardt病和眼底黄色斑点病
汪泽,陈芙生,王盖,王友军,宋振英,俞自萍
国外医学.眼科学分册
10
视网膜色素变性的皮纹学研究及家系调查
胡克莲,谭震涛,俞自萍,祝藏,曹凯
眼科新进展
11
麻痹性下睑外翻的一个新矫正术
俞自萍;
眼科新进展
12
学生练习眼底检查与屈光检查用的模型眼
俞自萍;
眼科新进展
13
房水流畅系数(C 值)的一个测定法
曹凯,俞自萍,曹愈
实用眼科杂志
14
视神经疾病与黄斑疾病的色觉表现
俞自萍
眼科新进展
15
半乳糖诱发大鼠白内障晶体中三种同工酶的研究
丁克西,俞自萍
实用眼科杂志
16
穿透角膜移植20例报告
童文秋; 王育鸿; 俞自萍;
角膜病杂志
她所发表的中文文章

在专业选择中处理色盲问题的初步探讨
A PRELIMINARY STUDY OF COLORBLINDNESS IN THE
PERSONNEL SELECTION
北京大学学报(自然科学)
编辑部邮箱 , 1958年03期
【作者】 陈舒永；
【Author】 Che’n Shu-yung (Department of Philosophy)
【机构】 北京大学哲学系心理学数研室；
【摘要】 <正> 一.问题的提出
1956年我国高等学校招生委员会公布的“报考高等学校的健康条件”规定,色盲(包括色弱)不能报考的系科有七大类之多,而且每大类之中还包括着许多专业。根据方怀时和柳安昌检查出来的中国人的色盲率,色盲在男子中占6％,在女子中占1.5％。假设我国现有的五百万知识分子是男女各半的话,按照上述规定,则只在我国的知识分子中, 更多还原
【Abstract】 158 subjects were
examined with the Ishibara Colorblindness tests and the pH colorimeter. The
results of these two types of colorblindness tests wene found not in perfect
agreement. This fact indicates that the general practice of using the Ishsbara
tests in the selection of aspirants to the geological profession is of
questionable value, since the ability to discriminate the pH color is a
requisite in the geological work.Calling attention to the diversity of
colorblindness, and the different
陈舒永，我们都要记住这个名字，她在1958年就提出不应该用石原检测图测色盲（就是我们那个小本本）并且通过实验证明所谓色弱患者ph比色能力与正常人相同或更高！！！


关爱色弱、色盲群体,解决机动车驾驶问题
Concerning About the People of Light
Achromatopsia or Achromatopsia for Solving the Problem of Driving Motor
Vehicle
道路交通与安全 , Road
Traffic & Safety,
编辑部邮箱 , 2006年02期
【作者】 李丹； 张大宁； 李卉； 张铁志；
【Author】 LI Dan , ZHANG Daning, LI Hui, ZHANG Tiezhi(Transportation
teach- ing section ,the school of civil and transportation , Anshan university
of science and technology ,Anshan, 114044)
【机构】 鞍山科技大学土交学院交通教研室； 鞍山科技大学土交学院交通教研室 辽宁鞍山114044； 辽宁鞍山114044；
【摘要】 应色弱、色盲群体的呼声和受有声行人信号的启发,提出了解决色弱、色盲群体机动车驾驶问题的必要性,并提出几种解决方案,以引起社会各界对这一问题的重视。 更多还原
【Abstract】 In conformity with the
voice of light achro- matopsia or achromatopsia people and receiving the in-
spiration of the sound pedestrian’s signal light, the necessity of solving the
problem of driving motor vehicle for light achromatopsia or achromatopsia people
is put forward, and several methods are offered, in order to cause the attention
to this question of the all society.
这应该是那个人大提议的姊妹版本


D