EnChroma

EnChroma

Glasses with special lenses which change color perception.
Manufacturer	EnChroma
Website	https://enchroma.com/

EnChroma are a brand of color corrective lenses designed to address the symptoms of red-green color blindness. Studies have shown that these lenses can alter the perception of colors that were already perceived, but they do not restore normal color vision.^[1]

Company

EnChroma lenses are designed, manufactured, marketed and distributed by EnChroma, inc. based in Berkley, California, USA. EnChroma glasses were invented incidentally in 2002 by Donald McPherson while trying to develop lenses to protect and aid surgeons during laser operations. The company received a grant from the NIH in 2005 and the glasses were released to the public in 2012, with cheaper versions arriving in 2014.^[2] In 2015, EnChroma teamed up with Valspar Paint in an advertising campaign titled "Color For All", which focused on the experience of trying on EnChroma glasses for the first time. This led new EnChroma owners to independently upload their own reaction videos, which eventually earned the ad campaign a number of marketing PRO awards by Chief Marketer, including best use of video and best use of social/viral marketing.^[3]

Color blindness

The target users of the lenses have either deuteranomaly or protanomaly, both forms of red-green anomalous trichromacy, the most common forms of partial color blindness. The mechanism of red-green anomalous trichomacy sees the spectral sensitivity of the red- and green-sensitive cone opsins (L-opsin and M-opsin, respectively) shift towards eachother, i.e. the L-opsin is shifted to shorter wavelengths (protanomaly) or the M-opsin is shifted to longer wavelengths (deuteranomaly). Either mechanism causes a larger overlap between the M- and L-opsin sensitivities, leading to a smaller color gamut, and the inability to differentiate colors along the red-green axis.^[4] Common colors of confusion include blue vs. purple, yellow vs. neon green, grey vs. cyan vs. pink, red vs. orange vs. green vs. brown.^[5] Neither dichromatic (protanopia or deuteranopia) users nor tritan users are targeted by EnChroma.^[6]

As of December 2023, EnChroma markets SuperX lenses to non-colorblind users.^[7]

Working principle

EnChroma lenses are composed primarily of an optical notch filter that selectively filters wavelengths of light in the part of the spectrum where the M- and L-opsin sensitivities overlap, namely 530-560 nm, thereby removing light that excites both opsin types and decorrelating the signals between the M- and L-cones.^[6][8] EnChroma claims that the notch filter effectively re-separates the spectral sensitivities of the opsins, increasing the dynamic range of the red-green opponent process channel closer to that of color normal subjects, thereby correcting anomalous trichromacy (partial color blindness) and enabling users to distinguish colors they could not distinguish without the glasses.^[9][10] A number of patents have been awarded based on the technology.^[8][11][12]

Independent analysis and reviews

The American Optometric Association reports that "Using specially tinted eyeglasses ... can increase some people's ability to differentiate between colors, though nothing can make them truly see the deficient color."^[13]

A study in 2017 involving 23 males aged from 20 to 25 years with normal trichromatic color vision showed that EnChroma Cx-14 lens notches the blue and violet region of the visible spectrum. This induced participants with normal color vision to experience tritan defect when wearing the lens.^[14] In a subsequent study, the EnChroma Cx-14 filters did not significantly influence the vision of colorblind subjects (n=10) and "improved the error score in only two subjects".^[14]

The first study to incite popular skepticism of EnChroma^[15][16][17] was a 2018 study published in Optics Express, where colorblind subjects (n=48^[a]) performed the Ishihara test, FM-100 test and a color naming test with and without EnChroma indoor lenses. The results showed no significant improvement to the performance on any of the color vision tests.^[1] The study also claimed that only one participant noticed any difference in the colors in the test environment, when prompted, and the results "cast doubt on the real effectiveness these devices have on the color vision of observers with CVD." The study also showed that the mistakes made in the color naming test changed with the lenses on, suggesting that while it is possible for some subjects to freshly distinguish some colors with the glasses on, it comes at the expense of confusing others.^[1] In an attempt to explain some of the emotional reaction used in EnChroma advertisements, the study's lead author stated that "The use of a colored filter may change the appearance of colors, but will never make color vision more similar to a normal observer’s vision. It’s like turning up the contrast on a TV, which for some people can be startling enough to trigger an emotional reaction."^[15]

A 2021 article published by the American Academy of Ophthalmology reported that color blindness glasses "change what the people who wear them see, enhancing the distinction between red and green ... but the experience will vary widely among individuals, and these glasses don’t give people a true equivalent of natural color vision." The AAO also says that "the positive effects of the glasses last only as long as they are being worn." and that the EnChroma glasses "don't in any way modify a person's photoreceptors, optic nerves or visual cortex to fix colorblindness."^[18]

A 2022 meta-analysis concluded that EnChroma lenses show no "clinically significant evidence that subjective color perception has improved. As a result, recommending these color vision devices to the CVD population may not prove high beneficial/be counterproductive."^[19]

A 2022 study conducted at the University of Incarnate Word investigated the effects of EnChroma glasses on colorblind subjects (n=34). The study found that wearing EnChroma glasses led to significant improvements in color discrimination for both dichromats and anomalous trichromats. Additionally, the glasses were found to enhance participants' performance in various color vision tests.^[20] Similarly, a 2020 study out of University of California, Davis (n=48) assessed the glasses' impact on color discrimination, color naming, and color preference tasks. The results indicated that wearing EnChroma glasses led to significant improvements in color discrimination and naming tasks for participants with mild to moderate red-green CVD. However, the glasses did not demonstrate the same level of effectiveness for those with severe CVD.^[21][b]

Notes

References