Xanthopsia is acolor vision deficiency in which there is a dominantly yellow bias in vision due to a yellowing of the optical media of the eye. The most common causes aredigoxin's inhibitory action on thesodium pump, and the development ofcataracts which can cause a yellow filtering effect.
It has been suggested thatVan Gogh contracted xanthopsia as a result of digoxin consumption. Digoxin is a medication derived fromdigitalis and used to treat various heart conditions. This theory claims xanthopsia as the cause of the yellow tinting exhibited by many of his works.[1]
Xanthopsia is also a rare side-effect ofjaundice, in whichbilirubin may be deposited into the eye in sufficient quantity to produce a yellow tint to the vision.[2]
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