GLARE SENSITIVITY IN PATIENTS WITH PHAKIC AND PSEUDOPHAKIC EYES

Background Glare disability and appearance of halos may be side-effect s of cataract, but were also described in patients with multifocal IOL s. The aim of this study was to compare glare sensitivity and halo siz e in phakic and pseudophakic eyes. Patients and Methods Contrast sensi tivity without and with glare and halos around a light source Were mea sured by means of a new computerized test in patients with cataract, m onofocal IOLs, multizonal progressive and diffractive multifocal IOLs as well as in a younger control group of subjects with clear lenses. G lare acuity was measured at three different luminance settings. Result s Patients with cataract showed the most important reduction in contra st sensitivity, noticed significantly larger halos and were more impai red in glare acuity than patients with monofocal or multizonal progres sive IOLs. There was no significant difference in any criteria between these two pseudophakic groups. Subjects with a clear cristalline lens had statistically significant better results compared with all other groups. Conclusion An increase in glare sensitivity and the appearence of halos are more important in patients with even minor cataracts tha n in any pseudophakic population. As a consequence of this study, nigh t driving ability should be carefully examined in any pseudophakic pat ient, but also in any subject with even beginning cataract.