Irfan Ahmed Mughal, Liaqat Ali, Nasir Aziz, Khalid Mehmood, Naila Afzal.
Colour vision deficiency (CVD) in medical students.
Pak J Physiol Jan ;9(1):14-6.

Background: The incidence of Colour vision deficiency varies from race to race and different in different geographical areas. Colour is very important sign used in medical profession, but there is no effective screening for Colour Vision Deficiency (CVD) at any level of medical profession. With the introduction of OSPE / OSCE in university examinations in Pakistan at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, the students with CVD may feel difficulty in identifying colour slides, lab instruments, specimens and examining patients leading to failure in the examination so this study is aimed to find out the incidence of CVD in medical students. Methods: A total of 2,000 medical students including 750 males and 1,250 females between ages 18–21 years were examined for CVD in different Medical colleges of Faisalabad. Each student of 1st year MBBS class without occular abnormality was shown the complete range of Ishihara’s plates under day light conditions at normal reading distance. Results: Participant’s colour vision was tested using Ishihara’s Charts (Plates). Among 750 boys, 18 were colour deficient (2.4 %). Among 1250 girls, 56 were colour deficient (4.48 %). These results are discussed in relation to other studies and data on colour vision. Conclusion: With this incidence of colour vision deficiency, the students with CVD may feel difficulty in identifying colour slides, lab instruments, specimens and examining patients leading to failure in examination and difficulty in medical practice.

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