MULTIFOCAL LASER TREATMENT
Laser treatment is very effective in the treatment of spectacle errors and providing spectacle independence. With laser treatment the cornea at the front of the eye is accurately reshaped to provide sharp focus of incoming light at the back of the eye.
In order to see clearly at different distances, the lens behind the iris (color of the eye) has to change shape or accommodate. This allows the focus of the eye to change from distance to near for reading. The lens changes however with age and becomes progressively harder and less pliable, resulting in loss of accommodation. The result is that we become progressively more dependent on spectacles for reading, usually in our forties. This is known as presbyopia.
WHAT IS MULTIFOCAL LASER TREATMENT
In the past one possible treatment for presbyopia was laser treatment with monovision where one eye sees well at distance, and the other focuses at near for reading. Due to the difference between the two eyes, there is some compromise in depth perception that was not acceptable for everyone.
With multifocal laser treatment however, we aim for balanced vision. The cornea is accurately reshaped to an aspherical surface. The focus of the eye is elongated to provide an Extended Depth of Focus (EDOF) effect. The eye treated for near vision can therefore provide sharp focus for reading, but also assist with distance vision. The result is a balance between the two eyes with no loss in depth perception.
The multifocal laser treatment is ideal for patients that start to experience difficulty with reading in their forties. The hardening of the lens is known as Dysfunctional Lens Syndrome and continues to progress gradually. This results in the dependency on spectacles for reading and any work at close range. After the age of 50 years (and this varies from person to person) the lens fails us altogether due to further progressive hardening of the lens. At this stage the best treatment to provide spectacle independence, is a replacement of the lens with a multifocal lens.
