Partial color loss in hemiachromatopsia

Abstract

Hemiachromatopsia, the acquired impairment of hemifield color vision, usually results from an infarction to the contralateral occipitotemporal cortex. Generally, patients with hemiachromatopsia have a homolateral superior quadrantanopsia and are unaware of their color deficit. The literature on cerebral color blindness dwells largely upon patients with bilateral deficits (central achromatopsia), presumably because these individuals have greater insight into their color processing deficit. Here, the authors describe a patient with a partial loss of color vision in one hemifield. Initially, the colors red and yellow were appreciated as desaturated, while other hues were undetectable.

Key Words:

• Hemiachromatopsia
• superior quadrantanopsia
• area V4
• occipitotemporal cortex