Color Blindness Undiagnosed: TrueHue’s Mission to Revolutionize Color Vision Screening

By Ariella P. Biney and Shakeb Siddiqui

For most everyone, college is a time of new discoveries. It’s a chance to learn how others perceive the world differently, both figuratively and literally. As was the unusual case of Kamran’s story.

That particular day’s routine was, in every sense of the word, typical. Afternoon classes dwindled into the usual late-night study session. A couple of students were chatting about what was going on throughout campus: new classes, innovative projects, and the next Big Ten game.
One such project mentioned was TrueHue, a new color vision screening test. They’d seen students around campus talking about all the issues the color-blind community faced and the limitations of the current standards. In a group full of STEM majors, everyone was interested in trying it out. What began as a lighthearted way to take a break from school quickly turned into a shocking revelation.
Sitting around a large, circular table, everyone pulled out their phones and tried it out. The test was simple, at least at first, with an engaging game-like design that encouraged the user to use a color wheel to match two colors together. Minutes passed; one person after another received their results of ‘Normal Color Vision’ until just one remained.

“Hey wait, you’re still going?”

The question snapped Kamran out of his concentration. He looked up to find everyone staring at him, screens already displaying their final results. The pleasant atmosphere seemed to slump, weighed down by some heavy, unspoken realization. “Yeah… these last ones are tricky,” he shrugged it off and turned back to his phone. Whispers and curious glances came his way, transforming into giggles of disbelief. Matching the red and green hues proved increasingly difficult with each attempt, and the minutes dragged on. Finally, he completed the test and blinked in disbelief, stunned at the results: ‘Color Vision Deficiency’.

Kamran discovered he had been living with color blindness for years, undiagnosed.

Unfortunately, Kamran’s reality is not all that uncommon. Due to the limitations and inaccessibility of current color vision tests, people often go undiagnosed throughout their critical years of education. This can hinder learning, limit resource access, and cause prolonged frustration.

More robust than the traditional Ishihara test at screening for red-green and blue-yellow color blindness, TrueHue’s color vision test overcomes the current limitations and is more convenient than any other available standard. Unlike the old test, it provides quantitative, immediate results that allow for the efficient implementation of tools, software, and resources to improve a person’s quality of life— such as personalized filters for digital displays. The user-friendly interface doesn’t rely on the ability to recognize numbers or language, making it accessible to all ages and abilities. Integrating this quick, comprehensive assessment into schools and eyecare practices will help raise awareness and prevent more cases like Kamran’s, where people go undiagnosed for years.

With continued efforts and collaboration with medical professionals and educational institutions, TrueHue aims to integrate its advanced color vision screening test into existing technologies, VR applications and healthcare offices. Kamran’s story, unfortunately, is not the first, but TrueHue’s mission is to ensure it is the last.

Follow TrueHue on social media to stay updated on their journey to revolutionize and streamline color vision testing. If you’re a medical professional, educator, or organization interested in partnering with TrueHue, reach out at contact@truehue.app.