Bifocal and Multifocal Lenses
If you are over 40 and have difficulty seeing close up, you probably have a common age-related condition called presbyopia. This condition happens when the eye’s natural lens loses the ability to focus on close objects. Individuals with presbyopia are often familiar with the need to hold reading materials farther and farther away in order to see.
Fortunately for those who don’t like the look, feel or inconvenience of reading glasses, there is another option. Multifocal options are available in soft or hard contact lenses. Multifocal contact lenses give you added freedom over glasses, and they allow you to be able to view any direction – up, down, and to the sides – with a similar vision. On the other hand, people wearing eyeglasses with progressive lens have to point their head in the direction they want to see for optimal vision.
Simultaneous Vision Lenses
The most popular version of multifocal contacts is simultaneous vision lenses, which present the near and far vision zones of the lens at the same time. Typically, after a short adjustment period, your eyes learn to utilize the segment of the lens that they need for focusing on the desired object and essentially ignore any others.
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- Vision Plus - Corporate Office
2520 James Street
Bellingham, WA
An Alternative Option to Multifocal Contact Lenses: Monovision
Monovision is another contact lens alternative for presbyopia, particularly if you are having difficulty adapting to multifocal lenses. Monovision splits near and far vision between your eyes, using your dominant eye for distance vision and your non-dominant eye for near vision. Typically, you will use single vision lenses in each eye however sometimes the dominant eye will use a single vision lens while a multifocal lens will be used in the other eye for intermediate and near vision. This is called modified monovision. At Vision Plus, we can perform a test to determine which type of lens is best suited for each eye to allow for optimal vision.
Are Contact Lenses Right for You?
If you have presbyopia, contact lenses may be an excellent option for you. Many people prefer the look and convenience of contact lenses over traditional reading glasses. Contact our office to book an appointment.