title: Variation of chromatic sensitivity across the life span.
abstract: Thresholds were measured along three directions in color space for detecting an equiluminant color change of a set of bars embedded in a larger field of spatio-temporal achromatic noise for observers ranging in age from 3 months to 86 years. Pre-verbal observers were assessed with a forced-choice preferential-looking technique while older observers responded orally or manually. Over the life span, thresholds could be described along each color axis tested by a curve with two trends. Thresholds decreased with each doubling of age by nearly a factor of two until adolescence. Thereafter, thresholds increased by a factor of 1.4-2 with each doubling of age. Sensitivity to chromatic differences varied similarly along all three axes tested, suggesting uniformity in the sensitivity of chromatic mechanisms across the life span.
authors.affiliation: INSERM Unité 371, Cerveau et Vision, 18 avenue du Doyen Lépine, 69675 Bron, France. knoblauc@vision.univ-st-etienne.fr
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Knoblauch
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vital-Durand
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Barbur
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003118:Color Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D015350:Contrast Sensitivity / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008875:Middle Aged