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. 2021 Apr-Jun;14(2):199-205.
doi: 10.1016/j.optom.2020.06.006. Epub 2020 Aug 28.

Blue-yellow deficiencies in young moderate smokers

Mª Amparo Díez-Ajenjo  1 , María García-Carabal  2 , Mª José Luque-Cobija  3 , Mª Carmen García-Domene  3
Affiliations

Blue-yellow deficiencies in young moderate smokers

Mª Amparo Díez-Ajenjo et al. J Optom. 2021 Apr-Jun.

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate whether tobacco affects color vision in young moderate smokers.

Methods: Chromatic mechanisms of 13 moderate smokers (10-20 cigarettes/day and at least 5 years smoking) and 17 non-smokers in the 18-35 age range were assessed with the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-hue (FM100h) test and short wavelength automated perimetry (SWAP).

Results: FM100h Total Error Scores (TES) were higher for smokers, and although differences were not significant (p = 0.14), a linear model with principal component analysis was able to explain 95% of the variance in TES and red-green partial error scores, though not in blue-yellow partial error scores (p = 0.07), using the number of years as smokers and the number of cigarettes/day as predictors. SWAP sensitivity values were globally worse (p = 0.002) for smokers (25.7 + 6.2 dB) than for non-smokers (26.7 + 6.2 dB). In the upper visual hemifield sensitivity, total deviation and pattern deviation values were worse for smokers (p < 0.001). Differences in mean defect and pattern standard deviation were not significant (p > 0.05 in both cases). The number of out-of-limits points in the total difference and pattern difference map were significantly larger for smokers. After correcting for multiple comparisons, only the differences in the upper visual hemifield were significant.

Conclusions: This pilot study suggests that even young moderate smokers show small sensitivity loss in the blue-yellow mechanism, it is statistically significant, restricted to the upper visual hemifield. This corresponds to a retinal region where literature reports a lower density of retinal ganglion cells and where, therefore, the chromatic mechanisms would be more fragile.

Keywords: Blue-yellow perimetry; Colour vision; Sensitivity loss; Young smokers.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest and have no proprietary interest in any of the materials mentioned in this article

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Mean sensitivity values for smokers (left) and non-smokers (right) at different locations of the visual field. The highlighted positions show significantly lower sensitivity values for the smoking group (p < 0.05).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Total deviation values for smokers (left) and non-smokers (right). The marked positions showed statistical higher values for the smoking than for the non-smoking group (p < 0.05).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Pattern deviation values for smokers (left) and non-smokers (right). The marked positions showed statistical higher values for the smoking group (p < 0.05).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Figure 4: Mean quadrant sensitivities (left), total deviations (center) and pattern deviation (right) for smokers (dark bar) and non-smokers (light bar). Differences were significant only for Q1 (p < 0.001 for S, p < 0.001 for TD and PD) and Q2 (p = 0.006 for S, p = 0.001 for TD and PD) quadrants for the three parameters. Q1 = upper-left, Q2 = upper-right, Q3 = lower-left, Q4 = lower-right.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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