What are the main disadvantages of multifocal lenses over monofocal lenses?

Doctor's Answers 1

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Dr Harold Choi

Ophthalmologist

That's a good question and there is an ongoing discussion and it's important to decide.

With multifocal lenses, the key benefit is allowing the patient to see both far and near through the same eye.

In other words, with the same eye, you can see far and if you bring your handphone up close, you can see near as well, so that's the key advantage to the multifocal lens.

There are two disadvantages of a multifocal lens.

First is the cost, they are about 3-4 times more costly.

Secondly, most multifocal lenses have a low design and that causes a lot of glares, halos and effect. For most patients, they don't make much difference, but some patients who drive a lot or are fussy about nice vision find it intolerable.

It is not for everyone, generally speaking, your doctor should be telling you about all these side effects.

Similar Questions

What are the main disadvantages of choosing Multifocal Lenses over Monofocal Lenses?

This is a great question, and one that I ask my patient to give the most thought to when considering cataract surgery. Namely whether to use a premium multifocal lens, or to consider a monofocal lens. To be clear, the monofocal lens gives the best quality image / vision for a particular distance (which may be distance or near). Commonly, patients are given monovision where each eye monofocal lens power is chosen for distance and the other for near / intermediate activities.

Photo of Dr E-Shawn Goh

Answered By

Dr E-Shawn Goh

Ophthalmologist

Why do Multifocal lenses after cataract surgery cost more but result in poorer vision for both short and long distances when compared to Monofocal lenses?

There are several aspects to consider in answering this question. Firstly, there is no cure for presbyopia/'Lao Hua', which refers to the loss of autofocusing ability of the eye. There are no cures, there are only compromises. That is why, in order to get relatively good vision for far and near, some compromises have to be made for the contrast at a particular distance when compared to monofocal lenses. But then again, you have to consider what you mean by 'poorer'.

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