{"id":2857,"date":"2023-06-21T21:31:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-22T02:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/?p=2857"},"modified":"2023-07-08T16:20:06","modified_gmt":"2023-07-08T21:20:06","slug":"keratoconus-symptoms-causes-treatments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/keratoconus-symptoms-causes-treatments\/","title":{"rendered":"Keratoconus: Symptoms, Causes &#038; Treatments"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Keratoconus is a diagnosis indicating the eye\u2019s cornea is thinner and has changed shape from round to more of a cone-like curve. The cornea is an essential part of the eye\u2019s anatomy. Its job is to focus light on an area at the rear of the eye - called the retina. The light focuses on a single point when the cornea is healthy and round. However, a conical shape causes the light to focus on more than one point, leading to issues with vision and requiring treatment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Like most issues affecting eye health and vision, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/how-often-should-i-schedule-an-eye-exam\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">an eye exam<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is the only way to diagnose and treat keratoconus accurately.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What Is Keratoconus?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Research shows that keratoconus is partially genetic since at least 10% of all patients with keratoconus have a parent who had it too. However, there are other risk factors associated with developing keratoconus, many of which mean it can be avoided with careful attention and healthy lifestyle choices.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Keratoconus takes some time to develop, as the cornea is weakened by a person\u2019s actions, choices, or environment. The thinner the cornea becomes, the more challenging time it has maintained a strong, round curve. As a result, it begins to weaken and collapse, causing it to become more like a cone - visible in close-up eye profile images.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While keratoconus doesn\u2019t hurt, it does cause vision loss due to resulting blurred vision. In most cases, people with keratoconus are also diagnosed with something called astigmatism.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Symptoms Of A Cone-Shaped Cornea<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In most cases, you won\u2019t know you have keratoconus until it causes vision problems. The most common symptoms of the condition are:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blurred vision<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Distorted vision (straight lines may appear wavy or bent)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Worsening vision (typically by adolescence or in the 20s to early 30s)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Double vision with one eye and potentially even while wearing glasses<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Noticing halos around lights at night (which contributes to night blindness)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Increased light sensitivity or glare<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/why-do-my-contact-lenses-hurt\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Inability to wear contact lenses <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(most lenses are designed to fit a round, rather than cone-shaped, curvature, so some patients can\u2019t wear them depending on the degree of the conical shape)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even if you don\u2019t notice the slow-developing vision changes associated with keratoconus, we\u2019ll catch them during your eye exam.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Causes And Risk Factors<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We mentioned that genetics play a role in whether or not you\u2019ll develop keratoconus. However, other factors put you at higher risk for developing the condition.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Excessive eye rubbing<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We can\u2019t emphasize enough the importance of avoiding <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/5-reasons-to-avoid-rubbing-your-eyes\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the urge to rub your eyes<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Rubbing your eyes causes microabrasions across the surface of the eye. Most of the time, you don\u2019t know they\u2019re present, but these scratches continue to weaken and thin the cornea over time. Eventually, it can thin the cornea, leading to keratoconus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you are a chronic eye rubber, or you notice a child does, schedule an eye exam to rule out eye strain as the result of any vision loss. Instead, learn more about how to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/Relax-Your-Eyes\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">safely massage and soothe your eyes<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which prevents eye damage but provides necessary relief.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Allergies<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As this post goes to press, we\u2019re right smack dab in the middle of allergy season. Naturally, if you suffer from chronic or seasonal allergies, you\u2019re more likely to rub your eyes to relieve the itch and irritation. Similarly, the pollutants that cause allergies may be scratching the surface of your eye without you knowing it, creating the same recipe for thin corneas as excessive eye rubbing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Speak to your physician and optometrist about the best ways to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/common-eye-allergies-symptoms-treatment-and-relief\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">manage allergies year-round<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which can protect your eyes from cornea thinning.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eye strain<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Similarly, eye strain or fatigue also increases the urge to rub your eyes. The better rested you are, and the more disciplined you are about <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/prevent-eye-strain-do-you-honor-the-20-20-20-rule\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">taking screen breaks<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> throughout the day, the less strained your eyes will be.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Certain genetic or health conditions<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are also certain genetic or medical conditions associated with keratoconus, like Down syndrome, sleep apnea, asthma, Leber congenital amaurosis, and various connective tissue disorders (Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, Marfan syndrome, or brittle cornea syndrome).<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Treatment Options For Patients<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Treatment for keratoconus depends on the general cause, your health, and the severity of the keratoconus. Mild cases are corrected using eyeglasses. Sometimes contacts can work, but that depends and may require a bit of trial and error to determine which type of lenses are best for you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In more moderate to severe cases of keratoconus, treatment options may also include:<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rigid, gas-permeable lenses<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sometimes soft contacts can work, but more often the cornea\u2019s shape requires hard contacts to compensate. These are carefully fitted and the optometrist will work with you to ensure they\u2019re comfortable and facilitate clear, focused vision. These contacts are not disposable and require patients to honor the cleaning and care instructions for comfort and to prevent the risk of infection.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Laser surgery<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We may be able to use laser surgery to restore a more regular cornea shape. Laser surgery is used to treat a range of eye conditions, including astigmatism, farsightedness, cataracts, and more. However, in some cases, the cornea is too thin, so it isn\u2019t an option for everyone.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Collagen cross-linking<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some patients benefit from a procedure called collagen cross-linking. We use special drops that have vitamin B2 and then expose the eyes to ultraviolet light. This encourages the strengthening of the corneal layer. It prevents the cornea from bulging any further.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Implantable ring segments<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are different-sized ring segments that can be inserted into the cornea. This may help with the fitting of contact lenses. Or, in other cases, we combine this treatment with another corneal cross-linking surgery, preventing the worsening of the corneal bulge.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Cornea transplants<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Corneal transplants, using the corneas from a donor cadaver, are also used to treat keratoconus. This is only recommended in severe cases. The cadaver corneal tissue is used to replace all or a portion of your own.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eye To Eye Family Vision Care Treats Keratoconus<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We treat keratoconus daily here at <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eye to Eye Family Vision Car<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">e. Our goal is to find the least invasive method that gains the greatest outcome for our patients. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.4patientcare.ws\/wsv3pro\/web\/webschedulerv3.aspx?SessionID=26914180&amp;Gcount=0\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Contact us<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to schedule your consultation.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Keratoconus is a diagnosis indicating the eye\u2019s cornea is thinner and has changed shape from round to more of a cone-like curve. The cornea is an essential part of the eye\u2019s anatomy. Its job is to focus light on an area at the rear of the eye - called the retina. The light focuses on [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2861,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"Keratoconus: Symptoms, Causes &amp; Treatments | Eye To Eye","_seopress_titles_desc":"Keratoconus occurs when the cornea is more like a cone than round. It causes vision loss and requires correction via lenses or surgery. Learn more.","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2857"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2857"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2857\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2863,"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2857\/revisions\/2863"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2861"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2857"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2857"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eyetoeyefamilyvisioncare.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2857"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}