Success of monovision in presbyopes: review of the literature and potential applications to refractive surgery.

The monovision concept of correcting one eye for distance and the other for near may be utilized in presbyopes undergoing refractive surgery. We have performed a systematic review of published literature to evaluate the factors influencing monovision success, and to determine the visual outcome in patients with monovision. Articles in MEDLINE and published bibliographies reporting monovision prescription for correction of presbyopia were systematically identified and reviewed. Pertinent data were abstracted and, when feasible, statistically analyzed. The mean success rate was 73%. The success in monovision correlated with distance correction on dominant eye, alternating dominance, less than 50 seconds of are stereoacuity reduction, and less than 0.6 prism diopter of distance esophoric shifts. Monovision resulted in significant reduction of binocular contrast sensitivity function at spatial frequencies higher than 4 cycles per degree, and 2-6% reduction in task performance, but resulted in minimal reduction of binocular visual acuity, peripheral vision, visual field width and binocular depth of focus. The published literature indicates that monovision is an effective and reasonable therapeutic modality for correcting presbyopia. Proper patient selection and clinical screening are essential for monovision success.