Find information on thousands of medical conditions and prescription drugs.

Keratoconus

Keratoconus, or "conical cornea" (from kerato- cornea and conus cone), is a degenerative disorder of the eye in which the cornea thins and changes shape to become more conical than the normal parabolic. more...

Home
Diseases
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
Kallmann syndrome
Kallmann syndrome
Kallmann syndrome
Kallmann syndrome
Kaposi sarcoma
Karsch Neugebauer syndrome
Kartagener syndrome
Kawasaki syndrome
Kearns-Sayre syndrome
Keloids
Kennedy disease
Keratoacanthoma
Keratoconjunctivitis sicca
Keratoconus
Keratomalacia
Keratosis pilaris
Kernicterus
Kikuchi disease
Klinefelter's Syndrome
Klippel Trenaunay Weber...
Klippel-Feil syndrome
Klumpke paralysis
Kluver-Bucy syndrome
Kniest dysplasia
Kocher-Debré-Semélaigne...
Kohler disease
Korsakoff's syndrome
Kostmann syndrome
Kyphosis
Seborrheic keratosis
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Medicines

Symptoms and diagnosis

Keratoconus can cause the vision to become distorted quite badly, with "ghosting", "streaking", and light sensitivity all often reported. The exact nature of the visual distortion introduced by keratoconus is most clearly seen with a high contrast field such as a point of light on a dark background – instead of seeing one point the person may see over 100 images spread out in a complex and random pattern. The pattern does not change from day to day, but over the seasons it often takes on new forms. Doctors tend not to ask exactly what the patient sees, but rather test the vision on a standard Snellen chart of progressively smaller letters. Definitive diagnosis is obtained using corneal topography, a non-invasive visualization of the shape of the surface of the cornea.

The visual distortion comes from two sources, one being the irregular deformation of the surface of the cornea; the other being scarring that occurs on its exposed highpoints. Although some think the scarring is from abrasion by contact lenses, the phenomenon also appears in those who do not use lenses and as such appears to be an aspect of the corneal degradation.

Keratoconus and the associated vision loss, if in both eyes, can affect the person's ability to legally drive a car and function normally. Corrective lenses though, in most cases, allow the person to still drive a car.

Prevalence and cause

The National Eye Institute reports that keratoconus is the most common eye dystrophy in the United States, affecting approximately 1 in every 2,000 Americans, but some reports place the figure as high as 1 in every 500.

Keratoconus seems to have genetic components. Keratoconus is also diagnosed more often in people with Down Syndrome, though the reasons for this link have not yet been determined. Keratoconus has been associated with atopic diseases, which include asthma, allergies, and eczema, and it is not uncommon for several or all of these diseases to affect one person. Science has no definitive explanation of what causes keratoconus, however a number of studies suggest that eye rubbing may contribute to its development.

Read more at Wikipedia.org


[List your site here Free!]


$7.25 Million Awarded in Verdict
From Optometric Management, 9/1/05

LARGEST SUM EVER AWARDED IN LASIK CASE

A former Wall Street investment banker has been awarded $7.25 million in a civil suit after a jury found that laser eye surgery permanently damaged his vision.

The verdict came down in Manhattan Supreme Court and is thought to be the largest amount ever awarded in a LASIK-related case. A former airline pilot was awarded $4 million by an Arizona jury several years ago when he contended that complications from LASIK ruined his night vision and left him unable to fly.

Yale graduate Mark Schiffer, 32, claimed that the poor surgical outcome of a procedure performed by Mark G. Speaker, M.D., Ph.D., F.A.C.S., in October 2000 forced him to abandon his Wall Street career and take a job working for his father. Schiffer's lawyer successfully argued that his client had keratoconus, which made him an unsuitable candidate for LASIK. He also argued that Dr. Speaker "departed from accepted standards of ophthalmological care" when he performed the surgery. The award is being appealed.

I have participated in free vision screenings for children.

Yes: 80.4%

(181 votes)

No: 19.6%

(44 votes)

In a recent OM Quick Poll, 80.4% or respondents said that they had donated their services in free vision screenings for children.

Copyright Boucher Communications, Inc. Sep 2005
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved

Return to Keratoconus
Home Contact Resources Exchange Links ebay