Intraocular lenses (IOL's) are prosthetic lens implants that are placed in the eye after a cataract is removed. These plastic lenses are permanently placed in the eye after the eye's natural crystalline lens is removed because of a cataract. Monofocal intraocular lenses have only a single zone of clear focus. Patients with monofocal lenses see distance clearly, but still require the use of glasses for reading. Multifocal intraocular lenses offer vision correction for distance vision, just like monofocual implants, but also have another zone so patients are able to read clearly at a distance.

There are several types of multifocal IOL lenses available: ReZoom and ReSTOR. Both of these lenses offer different ring-shaped zones so patients can clearly see both objects near and far. The advantage of a multifocal IOL is the ability to be less dependent on reading glasses for near activities. Many people have presbyopia, or the loss of the eye's ability to zoom from an object in the distance to near objects, such as a newspaper, and this condition will start to bother them. Multifocal IOL's offer a better alternative to many people who are frustrated by their dependence on reading glasses.

Multifocal lenses typically produce a higher amount of optical aberrations, or errors in the eye, such as glares in low lighting, or halos around lights at night. Most patients with multifocal lenses find these aberrations to be only slightly annoying. Dr. Liang will be able to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of these multifocal IOL lenses with you to determine the best option for your eyes.

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