Treatment Options For Presbyopia

LASIK and Monovision


Monovision addresses the problem of Presbyopia that most people start to experience at the age of 40-45 when they begin to need reading glasses or bifocals for close vision. With monovision, one eye is corrected for far vision and the other is corrected for near vision. With this, the eye corrected for near tasks will not see distant objects as clearly when farther away. Usually but not always, monovision works best when the dominant eye is focused for distance vision and the non-dominant eye is focused for near to intermediate vision. The dominant eye is the eye our brain tends to favour for ‘sighting’.
One way of dealing with Presbyopia is to use LASIK to produce monovision. However, one should be careful of this technique of monovision as not everyone may tolerate the reduc tion on binocular vision.
We would recommend patients to try out monovision with contact lenses to be sure they can adapt to it. This ‘trial’ period is usually for one to two weeks.
glasses-and-contact-lens

Multifocal Lens Implant


Multifocal Intraocular Lens (IOL) have different ring zones to allow the patient to simultaneously see near and distant vision. Although these types of implants have been available for years, recent improvements in design have made them much more popular today.

The Multifocal IOL is suitable for patients who:

• Have cataracts
• Like reading or doing a lot of close work without glasses
• Like independence for distance vision
• Are not fussy about possible side-effects of glare and halos especially at night

The Multifocal IOL is not suitable for patients who:

• Drive at night for a living
• Work at the computers daily
• Are fussy about night vision side-effects

 

Multifocal lens implants are suitable for selected patients with cataracts and can help achieve total spectacle independence and may be the best treatment option for presbyopia and cataracts today.

Multi-Focal Contact Lens


A multifocal contact lens possesses several zones of differing power to assist the eye gradually as it changes focus on different objects at different distances. Therefore these lenses are designed to function well for seeing objects at a near, intermediate or far distance. Wearers of multifocal contact lenses are expected to need time to adjust to sorting out the different powers and to adjust to the lenses.

What’s available in Singapore?

For soft contact lens, only monthly disposable multifocal lenses are available. They are Bausch & Lomb Soflens Multifocal and CooperVision Proclear Multifocal. For rigid gas permeable presbyopic contact lens, both bifocal and multifocal types are available. The common ones are Renovation Multifocal, Boston Multivision and Menifocal Z lenses.

contact-lens-bokeh

Spectacle Progressive Lenses


There are many methods to correct Presbyopia. The vast majority of presbyopes wear some types of spectacles. There are monofocal (reading glasses for near vision only), bifocal (for distance and near vision, separated by a visible horizontal line) and multifocal progressive spectacles (for distance, intermediate and near vision without a visible horizontal line).

Multifocal spectacles are also known as progressive addition lenses (PALs) that allows one to focus on objects through different prescriptions for different distances through the same lens. The top segment is for distant vision, the middle part for intermediate vision and the lower portion for near vision.

spectacles-cleaning-cloth

KAMRA™ Inlay


The new small wound pocket insertion KAMRA™ Inlay procedure is a safe and effective procedure to help restore everyday vision while maintaining distance vision.

The KAMRA™ Inlay is a mini-ring (3.8mm diameter and about 5 microns thin) with an opening in the centre, the pin-hole effect of the KAMRA™ Inlay (implanted in the non-dominant eye) uses the same principle as the camera lens to reduce the blur when viewing near objects, and to focus light rays to increase range of vision.

inlay-for-presbyopia

KAMRA Inlay implanted in the non-dominant eye

The KAMRA™ Inlay is inserted into the cornea of the eye. The corneal pocket, into which the micro-lens is placed, is created by a femto-second laser.

  • What can I expect during the surgery?

  • First, numbing drops will ensure your absolute comfort duringthe 15 to 20 minute procedure. Second, your eye surgeon will create a microscopic opening on the surface of your cornea and implant the inlay.
  • Will my eye look different?

  • The inlay is very discreet. It is significantly smaller than a contact lens and lighter than a grain of salt. Even in blue eyes, it is almost impossible for you or other people to detect.
  • How long until I notice an improvement?

  • Your recovery time will vary from a few days to a few weeks or even months. The time it takes to restore everyday near vision depends on your individual healing time.
  • When can I resume normal activities?

  • Most patients resume normal activities and return to work within 24 hours after the surgery. Will I still need my reading glasses?The goal of the inlay is to reduce your dependency on reading glasses. You may still need readers if you are working in dim light, performing a near task for a prolonged period of time or reading tiny print.
  • Is it normal to notice dimness?

  • Yes, the inlay blocks a small amount of light from entering the eye, so an image in the KAMRA™eye may appear duller or darker compared to the non-implant eye. Avoiding closing one eye at a time to see the difference will make the dimness less noticeable until it resolves.
kamra-inlay-on-eye

Corneal Inlays

Corneal Inlays are a special range of micro-devices placed within the cornea to offer correction for Presbyopia. The installation procedure for such inlays generally involves the creating of a flap or pocket in the cornea and inserting the inlay directly over the centre of the eye. Such inlays are constructed using biocompatible material and have the benefit of reversibility if necessary.

kamra-inlay-on-eye
  • Small-Aperture Inlays like the Kamra inlay by Acufocus aim to use a pin-hole opening in the centre of an opaque circular micro-disc to allow only focused light to reach the retina, offering a wider range of improved vision for all distances.
  • Space-occupying Inlays like the Raindrop inlay by ReVision use a simple yet effective approach to manage presbyopia. As its name suggests, the space occupied by the inlay results in the raising of the cornea to create an overall steepening, offering a natural multifocal effect.

How do I decide which treatment option is best for me?

You should consult with your doctor to discuss all the treatment option. Every treatment option described above may have offered ideal results to some patients but they also have their drawbacks. It is important to weigh out the pros and cons of each treatment with your doctor in accordance to your individual lifestyle. For example, if you are an active person who enjoys sports and find it inconvenient to wear glasses, progressive spectacle lenses is probably not the ideal treatment for you. Essentially, there is not a one-size fits all treatment option for Presbyopia. At EEC, you can be assured that our doctors will recommend the most appropriate treatment option according to the needs and desires of each unique and individual patient.

Locate us

Mt Alvernia

820 Thomson Road,
Mount Alvernia Hospital,
Medical Centre D, #06-57/58/59/60/61/62
Singapore 574623

Fax: (65) 6456 1006
Mt Elizabeth Orchard

Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre,
3 Mount Elizabeth #08-08,
Singapore 228510

Fax: (65) 6836 0002
Parkway East

Parkway East Medical Centre,
319 Joo Chiat Place,
#05-03 Singapore 427989

Fax: (65) 6348-1001
Mt Elizabeth Novena

38 Irawaddy Road,
Mount Elizabeth Novena Specialist Centre,
#08-22/23/24 Singapore 329563

Fax: (65) 6570 1001
Westgate

Westgate Mall,
3 Gateway Drive,
#02-42A Singapore 608532

Fax: (65) 6250-6066
Royal Square at Novena

Royal Square Novena Medical Centre at Royal Square at Novena,
101 Irrawaddy Road,
#11-07 to 13 Singapore 329565

Fax: (65) 6456-1002
King Albert Park

KAP Residences Mall,
9 King Albert Park,
#01-42/43/44 Singapore 598332

Fax: (65) 6475-1880
HMI Medical Centre

12 Farrer Park Station Road,
#05-02/03/04,
StarMed Specialist Centre, Singapore 217565


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