To evaluate the effect of spherical aberration on visual function under natural pupil conditions after cataract surgery.

Keio University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.

This study comprised cataract patients who had cataract extraction with implantation of an acrylic intraocular lens. Preoperative and postoperative visual acuity, higher-order aberration in the cornea and the whole eye, contrast sensitivity function, and pupil diameter under photopic and mesopic conditions 1 month after surgery were measured. The area under log contrast sensitivity function (AULCSF) and spherical aberration corresponding to the individual pupil diameter under photopic and mesopic conditions were evaluated.

One hundred seven eyes of 79 patients (30 men, 49 women; mean age 68.0 years ± 9.6 [SD]) were evaluated. The mean pupil diameter was 2.9 ± 0.50 mm under photopic conditions and 3.6 ± 0.57 mm under mesopic conditions. The mean spherical aberration was 0.03 ± 0.04 μm (range −0.12 to 0.34 μm) under photopic conditions and 0.05 ± 0.10 μm (range −0.14 to 0.55 μm) under mesopic conditions. The postoperative AULCSF without glare under photopic conditions was significantly negatively correlated with spherical aberration (P = .014). The postoperative AULCSF with and without glare under mesopic conditions was significantly negatively correlated with spherical aberration (P<.001 and P = .01, respectively).

Postoperative spherical aberration had a significant effect on visual function under photopic and mesopic conditions. This result indicates reduced postoperative spherical aberration improves postoperative visual function under photopic and mesopic conditions.