Multifocal LASIK (presbyLASIK) is an advanced type of laser vision correction surgery that changes the shape of the eye’s cornea to create different power zones for seeing at varying distances.
Currently undergoing U.S. clinical trials, the procedure has been performed in other countries for the past several years, with promising results.
While it’s unclear when FDA approval may occur, multifocal LASIK eventually could be a new option in the United States for correcting presbyopia, which causes near vision to blur as the eye’s natural lens begins to lose its focusing flexibility.
If you are nearsighted and have presbyopia, you may be able to see up close without your usual eyeglasses or contact lenses but not when you are wearing them.
No one escapes presbyopia, which begins to show up at about age 40. Solutions for presbyopia include multifocal eyeglasses, multifocal contact lenses, artificial lenses (IOLs for cataract surgery) — and now, multifocal LASIK eye surgery.