Changes in ocular wavefront aberrations and retinal image quality with objective accommodation

PURPOSE: To evaluate changes in ocular wavefront aberrations and retinal image quality with objective accommodation in normal human eyes. SETTING: Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea. DESIGN: Cohort study. METHODS: Healthy emmetropic eyes were measured with an iTrace wavefront aberrometer while the subjects fixated at far (6.0 m) and near (40 cm). Wavefront data were analyzed with 3.0 mm and 5.0 mm pupil diameters. The influence of higher-order aberrations (HOAs) on retinal image quality was simulated by computing the modulation transfer function (MTF) from the wavefront aberrations. RESULTS: Eighty-two eyes of 42 subjects were evaluated. The root mean square values of total HOAs before and after accommodation with 5.0 mm pupils were statistically significantly different (P=.021). In particular, total spherical aberrations became more negative with accommodation, and the difference was statistically significant with 3.0 mm and 5.0 mm pupils (both P<.001). The MTF curves were significantly different before and after accommodation at 5 cycles per degree (cpd) and 10 cpd with 5.0 mm pupils (P=.031 and P=.045, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Ocular wavefront aberrations and retinal image quality changed with accommodation in normal human eyes. Total spherical aberration changed more than other HOAs with accommodation. Financial Disclosure: No author has a financial or proprietary interest in any material or method mentioned.