OBJECTIVE To determine whether brightness-induced glare decreases spatial contrast sensitivity and visual acuity in preoperative cataract patients with functional visual complaints and to compare preoperative with postoperative results. METHODS Sir Mortimer B. Davis Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. METHODS Twenty patients with a visual acuity of 20/70 or better at the time of chart selection and no other ocular pathology who were referred for cataract surgery were evaluated with the Optec 3000 vision tester to assess contrast sensitivity and visual acuity in the presence and absence of glare. Testing was done preoperatively and 1 and 3 months postoperatively. RESULTS An analysis of variance indicated that there were statistically significant double interactions between the preoperative/postoperative and glare/no-glare variables and between the preoperative/postoperative and spatial frequency variables. Postoperatively, visual acuity and contrast sensitivity improved to within normal limits. There were no statistically significant differences in visual acuity and spatial contrast sensitivity between 1 and 3 months postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS Spatial contrast sensitivity and glare testing provided objective assessment of patients who had good visual acuity yet also had functional complaints.