Keratoconus
Keratoconus is a degenerative disorder that affects the cornea. The cornea is the clear membrane that covers the colored part of the eye and pupil.
The cornea is the “window” of the eye and is the most powerful lens in the eye as well. Keratoconus is a corneal disease that causes structural changes within the cornea which causes the cornea to thin and bulge outward into a steeper, irregular, more conical shape than its normal gradual curve.
Keratoconus can cause substantial visual loss of vision, image distortion, streaking of lights, sensitivity to light, and multiple images., etc. Keratoconus affects almost one person in a thousand. However, the exact cause of keratoconus is uncertain. It has been linked to genetic factors and associated with detrimental abnormal enzyme activity in the cornea. It has also been associated with inherited or genetically linked factors within the cornea. However, the findings are still inconclusive.
Keratoconus Treatment in Houston
Many patients with keratoconus may be treated with corrective lenses, glasses, contact lenses, intrastromal corneal ring segments, and as a last resort, corneal transplantation. In order to stabilize the cornea, keep the keratoconus from progressing and even avoid having to have a corneal transplant, many patients have elected to move forward with a procedure called Corneal Collagen Crosslinking, also known as “CXL.”
We were the first FDA Approved site for the clinical trials of CXL in Houston, Texas and we are still currently involved in this study. If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with keratoconus and you live in or near the Houston area, please feel free to call or contact us for more information. We encourage you to visit our cross-linking page for more information on this procedure and its wonderful results. Crosslinking is a procedure that we do not recommend waiting around for. The goal of cross linking is to stop keratoconus progression, and not “fix the vision”. Each line of vision that is lost to keratoconus may not be regained. Therefore, we recommend crosslinking as early as progressive keratoconus is diagnosed.
The doctors at Slade and Baker Vision have either authored or reviewed and approved this content.
