[Vision with bifocal and multifocal intraocular lenses].

Bifocal or multifocal intraocular lenses (IOLs) can be used to replace natural lenses during cataract surgery. These lenses are recommended by cataract surgeons as the replacement lenses of choice when patients wish to avoid wearing spectacles. There are, however, drawbacks to these lenses: one drawback is that the contrast in the images of bifocal and multifocal lenses is reduced as documented in the ophthalmology literature. It is claimed that acuity is similar in multifocal compared to monofocal lenses, however, we show that any loss in contrast inevitably reduces visual acuity. The other drawback is that the sharp in-focus image is always seen superimposed on one or more blurred out of focus images of the same object. In the ophthalmology literature it is assumed that the brain can suppress the undesired blurred image and only perceive the sharp image. We argue that there are no known mechanisms that would make this possible. This means that vision with bifocal or multifocal implanted lenses cannot be as good as vision with monofocal implants supplemented by spectacles, and this should be explained to patients before undergoing surgery for lens replacement. The results also hold for bifocal and multifocal contact lenses.