Hydrogel Inlay for Presbyopia: Objective and Subjective Visual Outcomes

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Corneal Surgery

Background:

• Presbyopia, an age-related condition, reduces the eye's ability to focus on near objects.
• Corneal inlays offer a potential surgical solution to restore near vision.
• Hydrogel inlays are designed to improve visual performance with minimal invasiveness.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess visual performance and optical quality after corneal hydrogel inlay implantation for presbyopia treatment.
• To evaluate patient satisfaction with the inlay as a presbyopia correction method.

Main Methods:

• Monocular implantation of a Raindrop Near Vision Inlay in 22 emmetropic presbyopia patients.
• Femtosecond laser-assisted corneal flap creation for inlay placement.
• Postoperative assessment of near/distance visual acuity, ocular aberrations, and patient-reported outcomes.

Main Results:

• Significant improvement in uncorrected near visual acuity (20/129 to 20/35) at 6 months (P < .01).
• No significant change in uncorrected distance visual acuity (P =.257).
• 82% patient satisfaction, despite 40% experiencing glare/decreased night vision and 13.6% needing reading glasses.

Conclusions:

• Corneal hydrogel inlays effectively enhance uncorrected near visual acuity in presbyopia patients.
• The inlay has a moderate impact on overall visual quality.
• Patient satisfaction in this Korean cohort was lower than previously reported in Western populations.