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Age-related effects of glare on luminance and color contrast sensitivity
R Steen1, D Whitaker, D B Elliott
1Department of Vision Sciences, Aston University, Birmingham, England.
Purpose:
To determine the effect of disability glare (DG) upon luminance and color contrast sensitivity for young and elderly subjects.
Methods:
DG was defined as the difference in contrast sensitivity with and without the presence of a glare source. Isoluminant color gratings were modulated either along a red-green (R-G) or blue-yellow (B-Y) axis.
Results:
Without glare the effect of age on sensitivity to both luminance and R-G color-modulated gratings was small and did not reach statistical significance (P > 0.1). However, the reduction in sensitivity for B-Y color modulation was highly significant (P < 0.01). For both age groups, DG was greatest for the R-G stimulus and least for the B-Y. DG in the elderly increased relative to the young observers for both R-G and luminance-modulated gratings (P < 0.01) but not for B-Y (P > 0.01).
Conclusions:
The precise effect of a glare source on color discrimination depends upon a complex interaction between the chromaticity of the glare source and that of the stimulus. In certain circumstances, such as in our R-G stimulus, glare can dramatically reduce chromatic discrimination ability by desaturating the component colors.