The effect of monovision contact lenses on reading speed and comprehension and a comparison of fitting the near add on the dominant versus non-dominant eye

Monovision has been a successful correction modality for over 30 years. While there has been considerable interest in the area, there are little data regarding the effect of monovision contact lenses on eye movements used specifically during the two-dimensional, high contrast task of reading. This study examined the effects of monovision on reading speed and comprehension and whether the preferred eye, corrected for far versus near, affected reading performance for 8 presbyopic subjects. These subjects were carefully screened to meet normal visual function criteria. The subjects wore three different combinations of lenses, and measurements related to their eye movements were recorded using the Ober-2-Visagraph while reading a passage. Monovision contact lenses were found to have no significant effect on reading speed and comprehension in this small group of presbyopes. Likewise, there appeared to be no effect on reading performance related to whether the preferred eye was corrected for far versus near. However, specific research parameters for future studies aimed at determining the effect of monovision on reading speed and comprehension have been proposed