contrast sensitivity

con·trast sen·si·tiv·i·ty

in optics, the ability to discern the difference in brightness of adjacent areas; in radiology, allergic reaction to iodinated radiographic contrast medium.

contrast sensitivity

The ability to distinguish objects from the background in which they are located. It is a critical component of functionally adequate vision.

sensitivity, contrast

The ability to detect luminance contrast. In psychophysical terms it is the reciprocal of the minimum perceptible contrast. The measurement of the contrast sensitivity of the eye is a more complete assessment of vision than standard visual acuity measurement. It provides an evaluation of the detection of objects (usually sinusoidal gratings) of varying spatial frequencies and of variable contrast and thus obtaining a contrast sensitivity function (CSF). Example: following amblyopia treatment, some cases still have the same visual acuity while the CSF is improved. See contrast sensitivity chart; contrast sensitivity function; spurious resolution; Arden grating test; Vistech.

Table S1 Relationship between contrast sensitivity and contrast threshold (contrast sensitivity = 1/contrast threshold). Neither values have units
		contrast threshold
contrast sensitivity	log₁₀ contrast sensitivity	decimal	%
1000	3.00	0.001	0.1
100	2.00	0.01	1
20	1.30	0.05	5
10.00	1.00	0.1	10
5.00	0.70	0.2	20
3.33	0.52	0.3	30
2.50	0.40	0.4	40
2.00	0.30	0.5	50
1.67	0.22	0.6	60
1.43	0.15	0.7	70
1.25	0.10	0.8	80
1.11	0.05	0.9	90
1.00	0.00	1	100