Presbyopia in Practice: Matching Patients to Drops, Lenses, and Lifestyle

Presbyopia is among the most obvious signs of aging. The past decade has seen significant advancement in treatments designed to treat presbyopia, which is great news for those patients who present to our clinic with complaints about blurred near vision.

As Mark Dunbar, OD, lays out in his contribution to the second installment of the EMPOWER: Business + Specialty Care Optometric Series, presbyopia-correcting drops have significantly altered the treatment landscape. However, the promise of presbyopia drops sometimes exceeds reality. One of the biggest issues we face is misalignment between expectations and possibility—namely, that some patients believe a drop can restore true accommodation. We optometrists must educate patients about the strengths and limitations of the drops at our disposal and guide them toward a solution that best fits their lifestyle.

Contact lens technology, too, has significantly improved. Jaclyn Garlich, OD, FAAO, outlines how multifocal contact lens technology gives providers yet another tool to address presbyopia. Contact lenses may be sufficient for some patients, but as Dr. Garlich observes, they are often one approach among a multi-technology strategy. A combination of multifocal contact lenses and spectacles is a one-two punch that works for patients, but drops and even surgical options remain on the table.

While we are tasked with educating our patients about their options, we are also obliged to listen to them to best understand their needs. If our patients with presbyopia express a desire to wear lenses all day, then perhaps they are a good fit for lenses such as the MyDay Daily Disposable Multifocal (CooperVision) or the INFUSE Multifocal lenses (Bausch + Lomb). We have optionality at our disposal. We’re obliged to use it to keep our patients safe, happy, and comfortable.

It remains to be seen where presbyopia technology will go next, but it is likely that, for the near future, optometrists will rely on combination therapy to address presbyopia, and knowing our patients’ goals will tell us which therapies to recommend.