The flight of colors test in multiple sclerosis

L. A. Rolak

Flight of colors (FOC), the rapidly changing series of colored afterimages perceived when a bright light briefly strikes the eye, is impaired or absent in patients with lesions affecting central visual fields, especially optic neuropathies (ONs). The effectiveness of a bedside test of FOC using a pocket flashlight was compared with that of pattern-reversal visual evoked responses (PRVERs) in examining 74 subjects): 20 controls, seven patients with ON not due to multiple sclerosis (MS), 26 patients with MS, and 21 patients with possible MS and no clinical ON. The FOC test correctly identified 95 of 99 normal eyes and 45 of 49 eyes with ON, and accurately diagnosed 140 (95%) of 148 eyes overall. In 84 eyes examined by PRVER and FOC, the results agreed in 73 cases (87%), including those of subclinical ON.