The Vivity IOL

The Vivity uses a different method to provide near vision than most other presbyopia correcting IOLs. Most presbyopia correcting intraocular lenses use diffractive technology to provide near vision. In simple optical terms this means that the lens splits the light to focus into different focal areas. For instance most multifocals split light into distance and near areas. Different lenses will alter the percentage of light diffracted for distance and near and will vary the distance where the secondary focus for near occurs. The original Restor lens had the near focus slightly more than a foot which was impractical for most uses. The first generation also compromised distance vision too much and many patient complained that their distance vision was poor and resulted in a “waxy” vision. There were also disabling side affects of glare and haloes. I thought the overall performance of this lens was so poor that I stopped implanting them for years until the technology improved. Subsequent generations of Restor multifocals reduced the “add” of the lens to push out the near vision to a more useful and comfortable reading zone. Side affects were also reduced and distance vision improved. The last generation of Restor IOL that I offered was called the “Active Focus ” IOL which gave superb distance vision combined with excellent intermediate vision but relatively poor near vision. The Active Focus multifocal also excelled in its side affects profile. It was rare for the patients to complain of any glare or halos which was very appealing since that was the major downside of all multifocal IOLs. Most recently I have been offering the Panoptix Trifocal IOL with results that have truly been remarkable. The lens gives excellent distance, intermediate and near vision unlike any lens that I have experienced in over 17 years of implanting multifocal lenses. It is the first multifocal lens that I can enthusiastically recommend to all my patients that I feel qualify for a multifocal diffractive IOL and want to maximize the probability of being spectacle free. The downside of the Panoptix is the risk of glare and haloes around lights at night which could compromise the ability to drive at night. The Vivity doesn’t employ diffractive technology to achieve near vision. It extends the depth of focus without splitting light and has significantly less risk of visual disturbances. Starburts, glare and halos are significantly less than diffractive lens technology approximating the side affect profile of the standard monofocal IOL. The lens won’t perform as well as the Panoptix for near vision but in patients who are concerned with visual disturbances but still want some functional near and intermediate vision the Vivity is a good choice. Expect to need over the counter readers for small print. Comfortable viewing of intermediated distances such as the computer, car dashboard and mobile phone is usually attainable with the Vivity.