MyDay® multifocal: A lens for all presbyopes

by Jennifer Stewart, OD

As an ECP fitting primarily daily disposables, I am always looking for ways to wow my patients and continue to provide them with the latest and greatest in new contact lens technology.  One area that I take pride in is our multifocal penetration- I have embraced multifocal lenses for my patients since the beginning, and always look for a news lens design and technology to continue to offer my patients the best vision at all distances.

When the MyDay^® Multifocal was launched, I was honored to be one of the first to receive a fit set.  I immediately set out to offer the lens to all presbyopes that I saw, so I could begin learning how better to fit the lens, who would be a great candidate, and other pearls to share to help other doctors be successful.  What I was most impressed with off the bat was the versatility of the lens. 

With many presbyopic patients, end of day discomfort and dryness can be a real issue.  I have had great success with the MyDay^® sphere and toric lenses with all patients, due to the comfort of the lens from insertion to end of day[1]^,[2].  The MyDay multifocal features the same Aquaform Technology^® I was familiar with.  This gives my patients the best combination of comfort, handling[3], softness and lens performance.  The high water content and modulus of the stenfilcon A lens make it a soft, flexible lens that easy for all patients to handle[4].  I know my patients are getting a healthy lens wearing experience based on the high oxygen permeability (100 Dk/t at -3.00).

What truly sets this lens apart is the CooperVision Binocular Progressive System^®, which gives clear, crisp vision at every distance[5].  Instead of just having different add powers, this system has different lens designs for all levels of presbyopia.  This lens also has more prescription options than any other 1-day multifocal lens, so I know I can use this lens for almost any patient in my chair[6].

One new exciting benefit of the MyDay multifocal is that it is also an environmentally friendly lens choice[7].  With such a focus on sustainability, I am particular in what lenses I am prescribing for my patients, and love to share with them that the MyDay multifocal is a net plastic neutral lens[8].   This means that for every MyDay contact lens box bought, Coopervision purchases a credit from Plastic Bank^® to collect and convert an equal amount[9] of ocean bound plastic[10].  This plastic is repurposed into the global manufacturing supply chain.  For those patients who are uneasy about converting to daily disposable lenses due to possible waste, this is a great way to educate them on the lens choices that are available.

As a nearly presbyopic patient myself, I’m always looking at myself as a patient, and thinking about my contact lens journey.  As a patient who is happily wearing MyDay sphere, what will happen to me as I near presbyopia and need reading correction?  I’m very happy with the comfort of my lenses, as are many of my patients[11].  Having a complete MyDay® family of lenses makes any changes a much easier conversion.  The patients who have been happily wearing MyDay® sphere become an easier conversion into the My Day multifocal[12].

With close to 8 months of using the MyDay multifocal in my practice, where do I see the most success?  For me, it is all pre-presbyopic and presbyopic patients.  I have been impressed with how well the lens performs in my low add patients[13], as these patients can be challenging.  I find these patients are having great success with adding a small amount of reading help, but having little to no compromise in their distance vision¹³ - which we all know can be tough in this group!  For my moderate add patients, this lens really shines in having balanced vision at all distances[14].  They continue to have great distance vision, find the reading comfortable, and report that intermediate is much improved14,[15].  The success for the Low and Medium ADD patients can be attributed to the aspheric center near design of these two lenses¹⁵.

For my high add patients, I’m always concerned that a lens that provides them with acceptable reading will always come with a significant compromise in distance vision.   The High ADD MyDay multifocal lens has a spherical center near design, along with dual intermediate zones.  This really provides these patients with optimal vision at all distances¹⁵. 

My real success in fitting this lens comes from using the OptiExpert^® tool.  It saves me valuable chair time and helps me select the first lens combination for my multifocal patients[16].  I utilize a scribe in my exam room, so as soon as I start talking to the patient about a multifocal lens, my scribe has already pulled up the OptiExpert^® app on their tablet and is entering in the patient’s prescription.  I usually give the lens selection a once over and have my scribe pull the lenses, so they are ready for the patient.  Using OptiExpert^® has made me much more efficient both in the exam room, but also in not having patients back as often as the initial selection is often their final prescription[17].

What has the past 8 months taught me about fitting the MyDay multifocal?  This lens has become my top daily disposable multifocal lens choice based on its comfort and optics12.  I know this lens successfully works for presbyopic patients in all stages¹⁵.