Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 21, 2026

Correction of Presbyopia by Monocular Bi-Aspheric Ablation Profile
Published on: September 20, 2024
Functional visual outcomes of cataract surgery in patients with 20/20 or better preoperative visual acuity
Eric C Amesbury1, Anna L Grossberg, Donna M Hong
1Department of Ophthalmology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the Jules Stein Eye Institute, Los Angeles, California 90095-7002, USA.
Purpose:
To measure the visual outcomes after cataract surgery in patients with 20/20 or better preoperative visual acuity.
Setting:
University-based cataract referral practice.
Methods:
In this retrospective case review, 2 groups of patients with a corrected distance visual acuity (CDVA) of 20/20 or better in both eyes before cataract surgery were identified. Patients in the first group had a cataract in 1 eye and an intraocular lens (IOL) in the other eye. Patients in the second group had cataracts in both eyes. Each patient completed a Visual Function 14 (VF-14) questionnaire before and after cataract surgery. Changes in VF-14 scores were analyzed.
Results:
The VF-14 scores improved significantly after cataract surgery in both groups. Patients with cataract in 1 eye and an IOL in the other eye before surgery (n = 28) had a mean improvement of 12.2 in the VF-14 score (P = .029). Patients with cataract in both eyes (n = 31) had a mean improvement of 14.5 in the VF-14 score (P<.0001).
Conclusions:
The functional vision of patients with 20/20 or better preoperative CDVA improved significantly after cataract surgery. This finding shows that arbitrary CDVA thresholds of worse than 20/20 cannot always be used to determine who will benefit from cataract surgery.
Related Concept Videos
Photoreceptors and Visual Pathways
Angle Closure Glaucoma: Treatment
Open Angle Glaucoma: Treatment
Drugs such as carbonic anhydrase inhibitors, α2- and...
Glaucoma: Overview