ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Cataract patients were always excluded from studies on ageing of colour vision; thus, effect of age-related cataracts on deterioration of colour perception has not been analysed. In present study, impacts of age-related cataracts on colour discrimination, postoperative recovery and related spectra were investigated. METHODS:In this cohort study, thirty age-related cataract patients scheduled for binocular surgery and 30 elderly volunteers were enrolled. Colour discrimination under photopic (1000?lx) and mesopic (40?lx) conditions was evaluated with Farnsworth-Munsell 100-hue test. The total error score (TES) and partial error score (PES) were calculated. RESULTS:Preoperatively, the TES in the patient group was 129.7?±?59.5 at 1000?lx and 194.6?±?74.5 at 40?lx, exhibiting worse discrimination than the volunteer group (TES1000lux?=?71.5?±?37.5 and TES40lux?=?113.1?±?38.8, p???0.001). Inferior perception were detected in the yellow to green-yellow (Y-GY), green-yellow to green (GY-G), green to blue-green (G-BG) and blue-green to blue (BG-B) colour bands (p???0.003), corresponding to the 470?nm-580?nm range of the visible light spectrum. Under mesopic conditions, the impact expanded to all colour bands except for yellow-red to yellow (YR-Y). Postoperatively, the TES in the patient group were 80.4?±?62.4 at 1000?lx and 112.0?±?85.2 at 40?lx, which were lower than those of the preoperative phase (p???0.001) but similar to those of the volunteer group (p?? 0.505). Postoperative improvement occurred in the Y-GY, GY-G and G-BG colour bands (490?nm to 580?nm) at 1000?lx (p???0.001) and shifted to the Y-GY, GY-G, G-BG and BG-B colour bands (470?nm to 580?nm) at 40?lx (p???0.001). Deterioration of hue perception for decrement of illumination was detected in the red to yellow-red (R-YR), Y-GY, G-BG, BG-B, blue to purple-blue (B-PB) and red-purple to red (RP-R) colour bands (450?nm to 500?nm) in the volunteer group (p???0.002) and the R-YR, G-BG, BG-B, B-PB, PB-P and red-purple to red (RP-R) colour bands (from the short-wavelength end to 500?nm) in the patient group preoperatively (p???0.001). CONCLUSIONS:Phacoemulsification could effectively rebuild colour perception in patients with age-related cataract. The postoperative benefits were most significant in colour bands corresponding with spectrum from 470?nm to 580?nm.
