What Is Keratoconus Eye Disease?

Keratoconus is a degenerative eye disorder in which your cornea thins and stretches near the center, loses its shape and eventually bulges outward to form a cone shape. These physical changes come on gradually; in fact, they may start with just the loss of collagen in your eye. The misshapen cornea distorts your vision and requires immediate medical attention by a licensed ophthalmologist. A cone-shaped cornea may also cause sensitivity to light and doesn’t offer adequate protection for your eye.

The cornea is the outermost lens of your eye, and along with the lens, it focuses the light rays that enter your eye. For clear vision, the cornea and lens need to work together to focus the light so it falls precisely on the retina at the back of your eye. Keratoconus most often affects both eyes. It develops from age 10 and progresses into your mid-30s.

Your cornea is critical for proper vision. To avoid significant loss of vision, seek keratoconus treatment promptly. At Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York (VRMNY), the best eye doctors for keratoconus have experience treating the condition, using advanced technology for an accurate diagnosis and effective eye treatment. These eye specialists use a multi-disciplinary approach that includes:

• Diagnostic imaging
• In-office procedures
• Surgical procedures
• Medications

Who’s at Risk for Keratoconus?

Doctors havenot yet identified a definitive cause of keratoconus. Studies imply there’s a predisposition for this corneal disease at birth. After years of research, some categories of the population have emerged as more at risk. Factors that increase your risk of keratoconus include:

• If you have a family history of keratoconus, you’re at a higher risk of developing the condition. Get regular checkups from a keratoconus specialist at VRMNY.
• Keratoconus starts at puberty. Parents must have teenagers checked for any signs of the eye condition to start early treatment, especially with a family history of the eye disease.
• Chronic eye inflammation. Eye inflammation can affect the structural integrity of the cornea. If you suffer from regular inflammations, the cornea can lose its shape, resulting in keratoconus.
• Chronic eye rubbing. Rubbing your eyes constantly can lead to thinning of keratocyte, loss of rigidity, elevated temperature of the epithelium and increased intraocular pressure.
• Other disorders. Children suffering from conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa, down syndrome, osteogenesis imperfecta and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome are at a higher risk of developing keratoconus.

When you visit any of the three VRMNY locations — in Manhattan, Brooklyn or Westchester — you meet with a highly trained keratoconus specialist. This eye specialist has the expertise and technology to carry out a wide range of eye surgeries to treat keratoconus that includes:

• Vitrectomy
• Retinotomy/retinectomy
• A membrane peel
• Scleral buckle
• Punctal occlusion/punctal cautery
• Keratoplasty

What Does Keratoconus Look Like?

Many people don’t realize they suffer from keratoconus, which delays treatment. To get effective keratoconus treatment, look for signs such as:

• Slight blurring of vision
• Progressively poor vision
• Double vision if you look through one eye
• Halos around bright lights
• Struggles to see at night
• Eye irritation
• Headaches linked to eye pain
• Light streaks
• Increased sensitivity to light

If you notice any of these symptoms of the corneal disease, consult the best keratoconus doctors in NYC for an early diagnosis. If you’re a parent, ensure your teenage child has regular checkups, especially if they fall under the high-risk categories. Your eye doctor for keratoconus carries out diagnostic tests, reviews your medical history and designs an individualized eye treatment plan.

Can Keratoconus Cause Blindness?

Keratoconus causes vision problems, but doesn’t cause total blindness. But failure to treat this corneal condition can lead to significant vision loss. Keratoconus affects your vision in two ways:

• Irregular astigmatism. This is the physical change in your cornea from a ball shape into a conic shape. The smooth cornea surface warps, causing poor focusing.
• As the weakened center of the cornea bulges outward, your eye becomes more nearsighted. You can only see close objects clearly.

Untreated keratoconus can affect your quality of life. With time, you find it harder to use your eyes as the damage to the cornea continues. Your keratoconus specialist at VRMNY stops the damage through advanced eye treatments.

What’s the Treatment for Keratoconus?

Your eye doctor chooses the best treatment for keratoconus after reaching a diagnosis. The eye disorder progresses gradually from mild to severe. After evaluation, your doctor selects one or a combination of the treatments that may include:

• Specialized eyeglasses or contact lenses. For mild to moderate keratoconus, the glasses correct nearsightedness and astigmatism.
• Corneal cross-linking. This advanced treatment involves the use of vitamin B, activated with UV light, to create and strengthen the collagen bonds in your cornea.
• These are tiny implantable clear plastic arcs to treat severe keratoconus. The ring flattens the cornea’s surface to improve your vision.
• Surgical procedures. In addition to the surgical services listed above, other keratoconus surgical procedures, such as a cornea transplant or a deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK), offer a long-term solution to cornea problems.

Advances in medical technologies have made keratoconus treatment safer and more effective. Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York has advanced technology for more successful eye treatment. The eye doctors are leaders in research and development of eye treatments. If you have any problems with your eyes, contact the best eye doctors in New York City at VRMNY and enjoy life-changing treatment at their state-of-the-art facilities.