Signs of keratoconus include increased light sensitivity, glare, decreased night vision, headache, difficulty reading, double vision, burning, stinging and redness. If the diagnosis of patients in this group is not made early, the quality of life decreases and the quality of vision deteriorates significantly.
Keratoconus is often noticed in adolescence, and can rarely occur in the twenties or later. Factors that play a role in its emergence can be listed as follows;
Genetic predisposition (keratoconus in the family)
Continuous itching of the eye, especially due to allergic conjunctivitis
Direct pressure from the contact lens
It can be listed as the habit of lying down and sleeping in a way that puts pressure on the eyes for a long time.
Advanced keratoconus can be detected in a standard eye examination. However, if the disease is at an early stage, a detailed corneal examination with advanced devices makes diagnosis possible.
The appropriate treatment method is determined by the physician who evaluates the structure of the eye and the course of the disease. The success of the treatment depends on the expertise of the physician, the stage of the disease, advanced technology and the reliability of the devices and products used. Glasses; It can be used in the early stages as well as at every stage of treatment. Glasses are worn to completely improve vision. Contact lenses; Special soft keratoconus lenses are given to patients who do not want to wear glasses or who cannot get results from glasses. In later stages, gas permeable and semi-rigid keratoconus lenses can be used. While these lenses improve vision, they may not be well tolerated by the eye. Cross Linking is a very reliable method applied to the patient in the operating environment in cases where Keratoconus continues to progress. It is extremely important that the patient's corneal thickness is appropriate. In this treatment, the eye is first numbed with anesthetic drops. Then, a very small dose of Riboflavin (vitamin B2) is dripped onto the patient's cornea. This procedure, which is applied together with UV rays and takes about 5 minutes, can stop the progression of keratoconus by strengthening the thinning and weakened collagen structure of the cornea. In corneal transplantation, first remove the damaged corneal layer with a diameter of approximately 7 mm. A section is removed in a surgical setting. The operation is then performed by suturing a healthy piece of cornea previously taken from a donor in place of the removed part. Intracorneal Rings Surgery performed on patients with sufficient corneal thickness is performed using anesthetic drops and in the operating environment. During the surgery, two semicircular transparent rings are placed in the channels opening to the center of the eye, just below the cornea. The purpose of this operation is to bring the center of the cornea, whose structure has changed and curved due to keratoconus, closer to its natural anatomical shape. The rings are perfectly tolerated by the eye. Although this treatment is a widely used method, it may not always stop keratoconus completely.
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