Sunetra Eye Hospital

Amblyopia is the leading cause of vision loss in children. Each year, close to four million children are born in the United States. Research suggests that about 1 in 20, or a child in every classroom, is at risk for vision loss without detection and treatment of vision problems.

Due to the many challenges it presents, amblyopia treatment can be one of the most difficult tasks a family will undertake. Typical treatment involves penalization of the better-seeing eye with an eye patch or dilating eye drops with the goal of improving poor sight in the affected eye. Many times, and for many reasons, cooperation from the child is difficult. Families often abandon the treatment because it is too difficult. Amblyopia 411 seeks to provide assistance to parents to ensure successful outcomes.

What is amblyopia?
Amblyopia or “lazy eye” is a common vision problem in children and is responsible for vision loss in more children than all other causes combined. Amblyopia is decreased vision of a child that results when one or both eyes send a blurry image to the brain. The brain does not learn to see clearly. Amblyopia may occur even when there is no observable structural abnormality of the eye. If amblyopia is not treated in a timely fashion the vision loss may be permanent into adulthood.
How is amblyopia detected?
A parent or primary care physician may notice either poor vision or strabismus. Primary care physicians routinely screen for amblyopia. Amblyopia is sometimes detected on pre-school vision screening.
What are the types of amblyopia?
The types and causes of amblyopia are: Strabismic amblyopia, deprivation amblyopia, refractive amblyopia, or
a combination of the three. All forms of amblyopia result in reduced vision in the effected eye (s).
What is strabismic amblyopia?
Strabismic amblyopia develops when the eyes are not aligned. When an eye turns in, out, up or down the brain
may “turn off” the eye that is not aligned and the vision subsequently decreases.
What is deprivation amblyopia?
Deprivation amblyopia develops when a cataract or similar condition “deprives” a child’s eye of visual input if
not treated very early, vision loss may be severe and may affect both eyes.
What is refractive amblyopia?
Refractive amblyopia occurs when a child has a large or unequal amount of refractive error (need for glasses).
Usually the brain “turns off” the eye that has the larger refractive error. Parents and primary care physicians
may not notice a problem because the eyes are often aligned and the good eye vision is normal. Therefore, this
kind of amblyopia may not be detected unless the vision is tested.
Will glasses help a child with refractive amblyopia see better?
Sometimes, but glasses alone may not correct the vision to 20/20. Glasses are prescribed initially and vision
monitored until there is no further improvement. Any remaining amblyopia is then treated.
Can both eyes have amblyopia?
Yes. When there are equal amounts of high refractive error, both eyes may have poor vision (bilateral
amblyopia) even when wearing glasses. Constant wear of glasses is very important and vision is checked
frequently. Vision typically improves but may take several years.
When and how is amblyopia treated?
Amblyopia is treated during childhood and the earlier the age the better the treatment result. Usually, by the age
of 9-10 years, the visual system is stable and the vision does not improve much with treatment. However, vision
improvement can occur up to 17 years in some cases.

The underlying cause of the amblyopia is treated (correction of refractive error with glasses or contact lenses, removal of cataract, etc) and then vision reassessed. If vision is still reduced, consideration is given to amblyopia treatment. The main forms of treatment are patches and drops. Occlusion treatment involves patching the better seeing to stimulate vision in the poorer seeing eye. The ophthalmologist prescribes the hours per day to patch based on the age of the child and the severity of vision deficit. Follow up exams assess vision in the poorer seeing eye for improvement and in the better seeing eye to confirm no decrease in vision (occlusion amblyopia). In addition to an ophthalmologist an orthoptist may be involved in the assessment and management of amblyopia.
What are appropriate goals of amblyopia treatment?
In all cases, the goal is the best possible vision in each eye. While not every child can be improved to 20/20, most can obtain a substantial improvement in vision. Realistic goals depend on the age of the child and the level of vision when the amblyopia is diagnosed. Your ophthalmologist can give you an estimate of vision potential.
How long does amblyopia treatment last?
Vision usually improves within a few weeks but optimal results may take several months and depends on the level of vision and age. Once vision has been maximized, maintenance treatment until 9-10 years of age may be required to keep the vision from regressing.
What happens if amblyopia treatment does not work?
In some cases, treatment for amblyopia may not succeed in substantially improving vision. It is a difficult decision to discontinue treatment, but sometimes that is best for both the child and family. Children who have significant amblyopia in one eye should utilize protective eyewear to protect the better seeing eye from injury. As long as the better seeing eye remains healthy, normal daily function is expected. There is no surgical treatment for amblyopia

What kind of patch should be used?
The classic patch is an adhesive “Band-Aid” type which is applied directly to the skin around the eye. These are
available in different sizes for younger and older children. For children wearing glasses, a cloth patched slipped onto the glasses may be utilized.

“Pirate” patches on elastic bands are NOT recommended due to easy removal by children.
Are any specific activities recommended while patching?
No. However, performance of near activities (reading, coloring, hand-held computer games) while patching may be more stimulating to the brain and produce a quicker recovery of vision. Watching a favorite TV program or use of a computer while patching sometimes encourages compliance.

We TYPICALLY do not recommend patching at school because it may cause problems at school such as difficulty learning, teasing by other children and reduced overall compliance.
What if a child refuses to wear the patch?
Many children resist wearing a patch at first. Successful patching requires persistence and much encouragement from family members, neighbors, teachers, etc. Children often throw a tempertantrum, but eventually learn not to remove the patch. A reward to the child for successful patching can be helpful. Usually cooperation improves as the vision improves. You may try using a reward calendar to encourage cooperation.

The use of arm guards, which are gentle restraints, may help during the difficult phases of patching therapy. These may be used not only as a deterrent from removing the patch but also as a teaching tool. The child will learn he/she doesn’t have to wear the arm guards if the patch stays on!
Is there an alternative to patching to treat amblyopia?
Sometimes the stronger eye can be “penalized” or the vision blurred to below the level of the poorer seeing eye. This can be done by using an eye drop (Atropine) in the better seeing eye and possibly changing the glasses prescription. Ophthalmologists sometimes use this treatment for mild and moderate degrees of amblyopia. Penalizing eye drops work less well when the good eye is nearsighted.

Question About Atropine
Atropine blurs close-up vision in the better-seeing eye. This encourages use of the eye with poor vision and improves vision in that eye over time. With atropine penalization, you will not have to fight constantly with your child to keep a patch over the better-seeing eye.
Do the drops hurt?
No. Unlike other types of eye drops, atropine drops usually do not sting.
How do I put them in?
With your child lying down and looking up to the ceiling, hold the eye lids apart and place the drop anywhere between the lids. If the child is frightened, try giving the drop before he or she wakes up. In some children it is necessary for one adult to hold the child while the other gives the drop. Eventually a routine will be established, and it will get easy to put the drops in. Remember to wash your hands before and after giving the eye drops.
What are the side-effects?
Rarely, a child can develop redness and swelling around the eye, or fever, or facial flushing. If this occurs, stop using the drops and contact your pediatric opthalmologist.
How do I store the drops?
They may be kept at room temperature. Be sure to keep the atropine drops out of the reach of children.
I gave a drop of atropine five days ago, and my child’s pupil is still dilated; is something wrong?
No. A single drop of atropine may dilate the pupil for up to a week. Although the pupil remains dilated, the blurring effect of the atropine wears off in 1-3 days.
Should my child wear sunglasses, since the pupil is always dilated by the atropine?
Outdoors on a sunny day, your child will be more comfortable wearing sunglasses. If your child already wears glasses, they can be coated with a clear ultraviolet filter, which will help.
How can my child function at school with the better eye blurred?
The atropine blurs the good eye for near work. This forces the child to use the poorer eye for reading. Allow the child to hold reading material close. If the atropine seems to be interfering with school work, contact your pediatric ophthalmologist.
How long will I need to use the atropine?
Treatment may be continued for months or even years, depending on the age of the child and the severity of amblyopia.
My appointment is next week should I continue using the atropine drops?
Discontinue the atropine drops one full week before your appointment (or before any surgery) unless your doctor says otherwise.
I put atropine drops in my child’s eye, but now my own pupil is dilated. What happened?
You most likely forgot to wash your hands after giving the eye drops. Be careful not to get the atropine in your own eye-I you could have blurred vision and a dilated pupil for up to a week.

If you have any other questions about atropine treatment, please don’t hesitate to call your doctor.

There is no cure for diabetic retinopathy. But laser treatment (photocoagulation) is usually very effective at preventing vision loss if it is done before the retina has been severely damaged. Surgical removal of the vitreous gel (vitrectomy) may also help improve vision if the retina has not been severely damaged. Sometimes injections of anti-VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) medicine help to shrink new blood vessels in proliferative diabetic retinopathy. Because symptoms may not develop until the disease becomes severe, early detection through regular screening is important. The earlier retinopathy is detected, the easier it is to treat and the more likely vision will be preserved.
You may not need treatment for diabetic retinopathy unless it has affected the center (macula) of the retina or, in rare cases, if your side (peripheral) vision has been severely damaged. But you do need to have your vision checked regularly.
If the macula has been damaged by macular edema, you may need laser treatment. For more severe retinopathy, you may need either laser treatment or vitrectomy. These procedures can help prevent, stabilize, or slow vision loss when they are done before the retina has been severely damaged. Newer treatment includes medicines like anti-VEGF medicine or steroids that are injected into the eye.
Surgical removal of the vitreous gel (vitrectomy) is done when there is bleeding (vitreous hemorrhage) or retinal detachment, which are rare in people with early-stage retinopathy. Vitrectomy is also done when severe scar tissue has formed.
Treatment for diabetic retinopathy is often very effective in preventing, delaying, or reducing vision loss. But it is not a cure for the disease. People who have been treated for diabetic retinopathy need to be monitored frequently by an eye doctor to check for new changes in their eyes. Many people with diabetic retinopathy need to be treated more than once as the condition gets worse.
Also, controlling your blood sugar levels is always important. This is true even if you have been treated for diabetic retinopathy and your eyes are better. In fact, good blood sugar control is especially important in this case so that you can help keep your retinopathy from getting worse.
Ideally, laser treatment should be done early in the course of the disease to prevent serious vision loss rather than to try to treat serious vision loss after it has already developed.
People with diabetes who have any signs of retinopathy need to be examined as soon as possible by an ophthalmologist.

In this fast and modern world contact lenses are replacing spectacles at the same time gaining popularity as an added beauty product.But people are not much aware of the instructions to be followed while using contact lenses. Nor they properly followed the right procedures to wear the lenses.

Oculist and opticians can give you the right information. Here are answers of some simple question for those who do not know how to move along with their new eyes.
Cleaning Solutions

Prior Information about the cleaning solutions recommended by your oculist is essential. Solutions available in the market are although harmless. But information about their chemical content and method how to use expiry dates etc. should be noticed.Cleaning Solutions

Prior Information about the cleaning solutions recommended by your oculist is essential. Solutions available in the market are although harmless. But information about their chemical content and method how to use expiry dates etc. should be noticed.

Most of the solutions available in the market are no rub solutions. Before putting them on your lenses just rinse them once and use. They are the most effective and highly prescribed solutions currently. As they comply removes, dirt particles and bacteria from lenses surface.
Tips to follow;

Rinse before inserting the lenses into solution Debris should be washed away from the surface of the lens.
The whole bottle can be contaminated if the tip of the solution comes in touch with the contact lens or your eye.
It’s essential to change the case after 2-3 months. Wash your case with soap and water, scrub with a new tooth brush. Warm water gives good washing. Air dry it, eyes are sensitive so hygiene is necessary.
Preparation of Soft Lens:

Wash your hands before using your lenses. As most of the bacteria, dirt and germs are carried by unwashed hands. It’s good to create a healthy and sterile environment for your sensitive eyes. Check the lenses after washing your hands whether they are right or inverted. The proper way to place the lens on eye is inside out. But it feels uncomfortable and pops out at once, it’s very common and happens mostly. Following are the three steps to learn the proper way of placing contact lens with the correct side on eye ball.

The Taco Test: Can be checked by placing the contact lens in the crease of your hand slightly to the outer side of your palm. Close your palm and notice that the lens obtains the taco shape if correctly done. The corners of the lens will fair out, and lens will be folded against itself from middle. In case of inside out position.
The Code Words: are engraved on lenses by same wise manufacturers. if you have a good near vision you read them easily for placing right side. Letters are at backside in inside out condition. So, supporting a more convenient use.
Bowl Technique: Place a lens on the tip of your finger. Observe closely that it forms bowl edges flair out when the lens is inside out. Flip it and check it again for the other side, be sure before placing on that you are wearing right side.

Don’t Forget!

To wash your hands properly with soap and water before checking out contact lens.

Remove all eye makeup, creams or lotions before placing lens. It’s better to do makeovers afterward. As it helps in keeping your lens wetter, cleaner for vision and hygienic for health of eyes.

Insertions of Lens

There are numerous ways or techniques of placing lenses correctly. We are here mentioning the most commonly used one. If you feel that you are following a better way, as it suits you go on with that one.

Pick up the lens with your Index finger.
Middle fingers of the same hand should be sued for holding lower lid of eye.
Hold the top lid with the other hand.
Make a large opening for your lens to touch the eye directly and smoothly without touching another surface around.
Calmly bring your index finger close to the eye ball. Softly place the lens over cornea. When you feel that corners are accurately attached. Release the lens from your finger.
Softly pull out your finger, close your eye slowly and pad your eyelid softly.
As gentle padding helps to remove air if any trapped under your lens. Repeat the same procedure successfully for the other eye.

Hopefully, this information will solve your problems related to the use and care of Contact lenses.
More on Eyecare :

The Popular Acuvue Advance and Acuvue Contact Lenses
The Benefits of Gas Permeable Lenses
Facts About Laser Eye Surgery
Importance of Sunglasses for Health of Eyes
Laser Vision Correction

Sunglasses protect our eyes from sunlight, as bright light is harmful for eyes.While purchasing sunglasses don’t remember their actual purpose and do check the ability of glass against UV factor. Sunglasses protect your sensitive eyes from all sorts of bright lights.

Other important role of sunglasses is the style statement. A wide range of glasses are available everywhere. Choose accordingly to your face cut, style, personality and age.

Sunglasses are most important tool to guard you against glares while driving. Now it’s recommended to wear sunglasses while driving at day. As it reduce the risk of accidents by improving your vision. Glares are the reflection of sunlight when strikes metal or glass.

Tired eyes can completely ruin your look.

As you slather on sunscreen to protect your skin this summer, don’t forget sunglasses to protect your eyes. The same harmful rays that damage skin can also increase your risk of developing eye problems. SUMMER is a great time to plan a vacation and special outdoor activities. Before you begin planning how you and the family will spend the sunny days ahead, here is some information that will help you safeguard your eyes and maintain healthy sight not just this summer but for a lifetime.

Eye Care Tips:-

Restful sleep for six to eight hours helps rejuvenate your eyes in a natural way.
Wear dark glasses if you need to be out in the sun.
When selecting dark glasses, make sure they are 100 per cent UV protected.
When sitting in an AC room, make sure the blast is not directed straight into your eyes this leads to drying and sensitivity of the eyes.
You must also protect your body while protecting your eyes. Always use a sun block with at least SPF 15.
Make sure that you wear sunglasses while driving also because the sun rays can penetrate even through the windows of the car. Wearing substandard sunglasses will make the pupils dilate, allowing more harmful UV rays to enter the eye and cause damage.
While driving motorcycle, always wear protective eyeglasses. If you wear a helmet, choose one which allows you to see and also shields your eyes.

Last but not the least do not forget to supplement your diet with green vegetables, carrots, nuts, red and yellow fruits. These are natural source of vitamin A and caretenoids, which are any day better then taking multivitamin pills.

Nearsightedness: What Is Myopia?
Myopia, or nearsightedness, is a refractive error, which means that the eye does not bend or refract light properly to a single focus to see images clearly. In myopia, close objects look clear but distant objects appear blurred. Myopia is a common condition that affects an estimated 25 percent of Americans. It is an eye focusing disorder, not an eye disease.
Myopia in children
Myopia is inherited and is often discovered in children when they are between ages eight and 12 years old. During the teenage years, when the body grows rapidly, myopia may become worse. Between the ages of 20 and 40, there is usually little change. Myopia can also occur in adults.
High myopia
If the myopia is mild, it is called low myopia. Severe myopia is known as high myopia. High myopia will usually stabilize between the ages of 20-30 years old. With high myopia, you can usually correct vision easily with glasses, contact lenses or sometimes with refractive surgery.
Patients with myopia have a higher risk of developing a detached retina. Ask your ophthalmologist (Eye M.D.) to discuss the warning signs of retinal detachment with you if you are in this risk category. If the retina does detach and it is discovered early enough, a surgical procedure can usually repair it. It is important to have regular eye examinations by an ophthalmologist to watch for changes in the retina that might lead to retinal detachment.
People with high myopia may also have a higher than average risk of developing glaucoma and cataracts.

Nearsightedness: Causes of Myopia
In order for our eyes to be able to see, light rays must be bent or refracted by the tear film, the cornea and the lens so they can focus on the retina, the layer of light-sensitive cells lining the back of the eye. The retina receives the picture formed by these light rays and sends the image to the brain through the optic nerve, which is actually part of the brain.
Myopia occurs when the eye is longer than normal or has a cornea (clear front window of the eye) that is too steep. As a result, light rays focus in front of the retina instead of on it. This allows you to see near objects clearly, but distant objects will appear blurred.
Nearsightedness: Myopia Symptoms
Some of the signs and symptoms of myopia include eyestrain, headaches, squinting to see properly and difficulty seeing objects far away, such as road signs or a blackboard at school.
Myopia symptoms may be apparent in children when they are between ages eight and 12 years old. During the teenage years, when the body grows rapidly, myopia may become worse. Between the ages of 20 and 40, there is usually little change.
Nearsightedness: Myopia Diagnosis
Your eye doctor can diagnose myopia as part of a comprehensive eye examination. He or she will determine if you have myopia by using a standard vision test, where you are asked to read letters on a chart placed at the other end of the room.
If the vision test shows that you are nearsighted, your doctor will use certain examination devices to learn what is causing the myopia. By shining a special light into your eyes, a retinoscope will be used to see how light reflects off your retina. As the light is reflected back from inside the eye, it can indicate whether a person is nearsighted or farsighted.
Your doctor will also use a phoropter, an instrument that the measures the amount of refractive error you have and helps determine the proper prescription to correct it.

Nearsightedness: Myopia Treatment
There is no best method for correcting myopia. The most appropriate correction for you depends on your eyes and your lifestyle. You should discuss your lifestyle with your ophthalmologist to decide which correction may be most effective for you.
Myopia treatment
Eyeglasses or contact lenses are the most common methods of correcting myopia symptoms . They work by refocusing light rays on the retina, compensating for the shape of your eye. Eyeglasses can also help protect your eyes from harmful ultraviolet (UV) light rays. A special lens coating that screens out UV light is available.
In many cases, people may choose to correct myopia with LASIK or another similar form of refractive surgery. These surgical procedures are used to correct or improve your vision by reshaping the cornea, or front surface of your eye, effectively adjusting your eye’s focusing ability.
You may have heard of a process called orthokeratology to treat myopia. It uses a series of hard contact lenses to gradually flatten the cornea and reduce the refractive error. Improvement of sight from orthokeratology is temporary. After use of the lenses is discontinued, the cornea goes back to its original shape, and myopia returns. There is no scientific evidence to suggest that eye exercises, vitamins or pills can prevent or cure myopia.

Now you can lose your glasses…on purpose!!

Remember how your life changed when you had to get glasses? Now you can change it back and see naturally again. All this is possible now thanks to laser vision correction. We know you need more information to make an informed decision: so we would like to answer some of the question you may have while considering this procedure.

WHAT IS LASIK?

Laser Assisted Stromal In-situ Keratomileusis [Lasik] is a method of re-shaping the external surface of the eye [the cornea] to correct low moderate and high degrees of near sightedness,astigmatism and far-sightedness, During the treatment, an instrument called the microkeratome creates a corneal flap to make it a painless procedure. The computerized Excimer laser then uses a cool beam of light to gently reshape the cornea so as to alter its curvature to the desired extent. The flap when replaced onthe new corneal curvature allows images to be sharply focused on the retina. The goal is to eliminate or greatly reduce the dependence on glasses of contact lenses.

WHO IS A CANDIDATE?

The treatment is for patients who have a refractive error and meet certain visual and medical criteria. In addition the best candidates tend to be those who are dissatisfied with their contact lense or glasses and are motivated to make a change, whether it is due to occupational or lifestyle reasons. However, only a thorought examination by our LASIK team can evaluate whether or not you are medically suited for LASIK.

IS LASIK SAFE?

Yes.When chossing this method to improve your vision safety should be your first corcern. It’s ours too.

Using advanced surgical techniques of Phacomulsification. The removal of the cataract is a safe and straightforward process. It is performed without sutures through a micro incision in the eye and takes 7 to 15 minutes.

No discomfort is experienced during & none or minimal after the procedure. These are the benefits of the surgery today.

What Method is used?

The best way to treat your cataract is to remove the cloudy lens and replace it with a new, clear artificial lens. This can be accomplished two ways. The first technique, called extracapsular cataract extraction (ECCE) involves removing the cloudy lens in one piece. This technique requires a large incision of 10 to 12 millimeters in length. This was the older method, requiring rest and care upto a month in most cases.

The second technique is the latest advance in cataract removal. It’s called phacoemulsification, or phaco. In phaco surgery, a small ultrasonic probe is inserted into the eye. This probe breaks (emulsifies) the cloudy lens into tiny pieces and gently washed out This lens is then replaced with a clear man-made one. The new lens is inserted and it opens up like a flower when inside. No stitches are used and the incision is self healing. Phaco requires a small incision of only 2.6 millimeters or less.
See a video of Phaco

This technique is the most successful method of restoring your vision following cataract surgery.

Whichever technique is used to remove your cataract, anesthesia will be a necessary part of the procedure. Two types of anesthesia, local or topical, are used in most cataract cases.

Anesthesia

Local anesthesia eliminates any sensation of pain and prevents movement of the eye during surgery. Topical anesthesia OR Eye Drop Anaesthesia is administered by placing drops on your eye. It eliminates any sensation of pain but does not prevent your eye from moving around. Both types of anesthesia leave you fully awake and aware during the operation. The type of anesthesia that the surgeon will choose for you will depend on the technique your surgeon chooses and the condition of your eye.

YAG laser
The YAG (yttrium aluminum garnet) laser produces infrared light impulses which create tiny openings in the targeted tissue through photodisruption. These short bursts of energy are used to treat secondary cataracts and the iris, and some retinal problems in the back of the eye.
Posterior capsulotomy
The procedure used to clear cloudy vision caused by secondary cataracts is called a posterior capsulotomy or laser posterior capsulotomy. YAG laser treatment offers the patient many benefits over traditional surgical procedures including:

* Virtually pain-free treatment
* No risk of infection
* Performed on an outpatient basis
* Only takes a few minutes and cost is reduced
* Faster healing with less trauma to the eye
With a YAG laser capsulotomy the patient sits in a chair with their head in a support that looks just like a regular eye examination station. The doctor focus’ the YAG laser onto the cloudy posterior capsule using a special aiming beam.

The laser beam passes through the clear cornea and lens implant. As the beam reaches its focal point on the cloudy capsule, the energy becomes highly concentrated causing disruption of the tissue and creating a tiny opening.
As the laser is activated a click may be heard. Multiple applications of the laser are usually required to create a new window in the cloudy capsule. The procedure only takes a few minutes and the patient is able to leave shortly after completion. In most cases pain medication is not necessary; occasionally however, some patients may require aspirin or Tylenol®. Good vision returns quickly.

A series of applications of the laser creates a window in the posterior capsule restoring good vision

THE WORD KERATOCONUS IS FORMED BY TWO GREEK WORDS: KERATO, MEANING CORNEA, AND KONOUS, MEANING CONE. KERATOCONOUS IS A CONDITION IN WHICH THE SHAPE OF THE CORNEA, WHICH IS USUALLY ROUND, IS DISTORTED, DEVELOPING A CONE-SHAPED BULGE, RESULTING IN HARM TO VISION, PROGRESSION OF THE CONDITION DEPENDS ON THE PATIENT’S AGE AT THE TIME OF THE ONSET. THE EARLIER THE ONSET, THE FASTER KERATOCONOUS PROGRESSES. THE CONDITION IS ALWAYS BILATERAL AND ASYMMETRIC- MEANING THAT IT AFFECTS BOTH EYES, HOWEVER ONE EYE MAY BE MORE AFFECTED THAN THE OTHER.

WHAT CAUSES KERATOCONOUS?

KERATOCONOUS IS AN INHERITED CONDITION THAT SOMETIMES SKIPS GENERATIONS. ITS ONSET IS USUALLY DURING PUBERTY AND OFTEN RELATED TO ALLERGIES(HIGH FEVER, ASTHMA AND ECZEMA). THE CORNEA IS A BIT MORE ELASTIC THAN NORMAL AND TENDS TO ALTER IN SHAPE AND THIN OUT BECOMING CONE SHAPED. RUBBING THE EYES CAN AGGRAVATE THE CONDITION.

HOW IS KERATOCONOUS TREATED?

1. EYEGLASSES IN THE EARLY STAGES.
2. RIGID CONTACT LENSES: WHEN GLASSES DO NOT WORK.
3. C3R – CORNEAL COLLEGAN CROSS LINKING WITH RIBOFLAVIN- INCREASES THE STRENGTH OF THE CORNEA TO PREVENT PROGRESS.
4. INTRACORNEAL RINGS (INTACS AND FERRARA): WHEN THERE IS INTOLERANCE TO CONTACT LENSES AND WHEN THE CONDITION CONTINUES TO PROGRESS.
5. CORNEAL TRANSPLANT: IN ADVANCED STAGES- EITHER A PARTIAL THICKNESS(DEEP ANTERIOR LAMELLAR OR DALK) OR FULL THICKNESS(PENETRATING OR PK)