This study included 112 eyes of 56 patients. Cataract surgery was uneventful in all cases and there were no intraoperative complications. All patients completed the questionnaire on spectacle dependence and attended the last follow-up visit. The sample comprised of 39 female and 17 male patients between the ages of 55 and 80.
Patient demographic information and surgical procedures are presented in Table
1. Additional procedures were performed on patients to correct astigmatism. This included 10 eyes treated with limbal relaxing incision. Two patients who had previous refractive surgery underwent IOL exchange on the dominant eye to achieve the desired post-operative refraction.
Table 1
Patient Sample Demographics (n = 56)
Participant Age |
55–64 | 14.3 (8) |
65–74 | 64.3 (36) |
75+ | 21.4 (12) |
Gender |
Male | 30.4 (17) |
Female | 69.6 (39) |
Additional Procedures |
Limbal Relaxing Incision OD | 8.9 (5) |
Limbal Relaxing Incision OS | 8.9 (5) |
IOL Exchange OD | 1.8 (1) |
IOL Exchange OS | 1.8 (1) |
Patient reported satisfaction and spectacle use
All patients completed a questionnaire on spectacle use and satisfaction, see Table
3. One question asked patients if the mini-monovision technique met their expectations for decreased dependence on spectacles. This satisfaction scale ranged from 1 to 10, with 1 representing the lowest level of satisfaction and 10 representing the highest level of satisfaction. The research findings show most patients reported cataract surgery with mini-monovision technique met their expectations for decreased dependence on spectacles. On this question 51 (93%) patients reported 7 or higher on a 10-point satisfaction scale, with only one (2%) patient reporting a 3 or less on their level of satisfaction.
Table 3
Patient Reported Spectacle Use and Satisfaction (n = 56)
1. Time Wearing Glasses for Reading | 0 | 2.4 | 2.8 |
2. Time Wearing Glasses at Computer | 0 | 0.9 | 2.0 |
3. Time Wearing Glasses for Distance | 0 | 0.7 | 1.7 |
4. Time Wearing Glasses for Driving at Night | 0 | 2.1 | 3.8 |
5. Time Wearing Glasses throughout the Day | 0 | 1.6 | 1.6 |
6. Mini-Monovision Surgery Met Patient Expectations for Decreased Dependence on Glasses | 10 | 9.3 | 1.6 |
Questions on spectacle use were based on a frequency scale from 0 to 10, with 0 representing never wearing spectacles and 10 representing always wearing spectacles. Overall, patients reported low use of spectacles for specific activities for distance, mid-range and near functions. Patient report of spectacle use was lowest for computer use, distance viewing, and for general use throughout the day. The majority of patients 51 (93%) reported low scores (0, 1, 2 or 3) for the amount of time they wear spectacles while working on a computer. Likewise, most patients, 51 (93%), also reported low scores (0, 1, 2 or 3) for the amount of time they wear spectacles for distance viewing. Slightly fewer patients, 48 (87%), reported low scores (0, 1, 2 or 3) for the amount of time they wear spectacles throughout the day.
The highest reported use of spectacles was for reading and for driving at night. Most patients, 41 (73%), reported low scores (0, 1, 2, 3) for wearing spectacles for reading, with 5 (9%) patients reported high scores (7, 8, 9, 10). Similarly, 42 patients (76%) reported low scores (0, 1, 2, 3) for wearing spectacles for night driving; however, 11 (18%) patients reported high scores (7, 8, 9, 10) for wearing spectacles for driving at night. The study findings indicate that for most patients cataract surgery with the mini-monovision technique relieved their need for spectacles for distance, mid-range and near functions. Nevertheless, a small number of patients need vision correction with spectacles for reading and driving at night.
Additional analysis
Correlation matrixes and Pearson’s chi-square tests were examined to determine associations between patient demographic variables, visual acuity and satisfaction. No associations were found between gender and post-operative uncorrected visual acuity in the distance eye (Pearson chi2 2.54, P = .467) or near eye (Pearson chi2 3.44, P = .486). No association was found between age and post-operative uncorrected visual acuity in the distance eye (Pearson chi2 54.10, P = .780). However, a statistically significant positive association was found between age and post-operative uncorrected visual acuity in the near eye (Pearson chi2 117.66, P = .009). No associations were found between patient age and patient satisfaction (Pearson chi2 127.24, P = 0.452), nor were there associations between patient gender and satisfaction (Pearson chi2 7.69, P = 0.262). A statistically significant positive association was found between post-surgery uncorrected visual acuity and patient satisfaction, indicating that patients with better vision were more satisfied with cataract surgery involving the mini-monovision technique (Pearson chi2 30.32, P = .034).