Contact lenses for astigmatism and presbyopia

At some point, most people will have to tackle the issue of presbyopia. Eyes aren’t immune to the effects of aging, unfortunately. Some people will choose to simply start wearing readers with their contacts, or switch to multifocal lenses. Luckily, modern contacts have made the switch easier than ever, even for people with astigmatism prescriptions.

Only five years ago, dealing with presbyopia and an astigmatism meant someone would have to choose between a contact lens/glasses combo or a hard contact lens.  

Today, there are multiple options that offer both astigmatism and multifocal corrections in a soft contact lens. They’re still a new technology but have become just as accessible as any other type of lens.

How they work

Like any other contact lens, multifocal astigmatism lenses work by refracting light through the soft silicon in a distinct way to correct someone’s specific vision issues. Previously it was too difficult to have both an astigmatism and multifocal correction in the same contact. They both required intricate adjustments to make a person’s vision perfect.  

These lenses were first unveiled for use by Bausch and Lomb in 2019 with their Ultra multifocal for astigmatism lenses. Those lenses opened countless doors for people dealing with presbyopia. It also inspired other contact lens manufacturers to follow suit and now there are several options available today.  

What to expect

If someone hasn’t worn a multifocal contact lens or progressive glasses in the past, they may find multifocal astigmatism lenses odd at first. They aren’t like typical contact lenses. The lenses are created with different corrective “zones” that adjust light differently. 

For example, some lenses have an add-power correction near the bottom of the lens so when someone looks down through their contact their vision will improve for closer objects. This utility allows people with presbyopia to deal with both farsightedness and nearsightedness simultaneously.   

The adjustment period for these lenses can vary between people but it’s often not longer than two weeks. During this period, some wearers report:  

• “Starbursts” or glare at night
• Shadows appearing on text or smaller objects
• “3D” images on flat text, especially on digital screens

If you’re looking for multifocal astigmatism lenses, we have you covered.

We carry the top two most popular lenses: Ultra Multifocal for Astigmatism and Proclear Multifocal for Astigmatism. If you have any questions about your lenses, don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

We have live agents available 24/7 to help.