What is the cause of keratoconus?
Studies conducted to date have not been able to reveal the cause of keratoconus. Although it can be seen in the same family members, it is not a disease that is passed directly to the next generation. It is recommended that patients with keratoconus avoid rubbing their eyes, as it is more common in people who rub their eyes excessively for various reasons. If diagnosed early, it can be treated with relatively simple treatments, but if delayed, keratoconus surgery may be required.
What are the symptoms of keratoconus?
The first symptoms are distortion and blurriness in vision. Although symptoms usually appear between the ages of 15 and 25, they may appear earlier or later. During this period, glasses are usually prescribed with the diagnosis of myopic astigmatism. However, it can be detected even at a very early stage with the corneal topography method called Orbscan and Pentacam. As the disease progresses, the shape change in the cornea increases and visual impairment becomes more evident.
If a young person has high myopic astigmatism and their glasses prescription is rapidly increasing, there is a high probability of having keratoconus.
CROSS LINKING TREATMENT
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UV cross linking treatment, a new alternative treatment method for keratoconus, is applied in our hospital along with a few centers in the world.
UV-Cross In linking surgery, UVA light accompanied by riboflavin is applied to the cornea and the resistance of the cornea is increased by increasing the cross-links between the collagen molecules of the cornea. Studies have shown that this method stops the thinning of the cornea and does not progress in keratoconus. In this way, it is thought that the need for corneal transplantation may be delayed or reduced. CCL treatment, which is appropriate in the early stages of progressive keratoconus, is repeatable. Thanks to the dose ofUVAlight applied and the protective effect of riboflavin, no side effects were observed in the treated patients.
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