Keratoconus Treatment

Treatment Options for Keratoconus in Oviedo, FL

Your eyes are an important part of the way that you understand and view the world. In certain situations, you can find that problems arise that you did not expect, even if it does not directly run in your family. Keratoconus is an eye condition that can cause concerns about the health of your eyes and the possibility of complications with your vision in the future.

What is Keratoconus?

Keratoconus refers to a condition that impacts the cornea of your eyes. The cornea is the portion of your eyes that you see through. It is essentially a clear window that allows you to see different colors, shapes, and structures in the world.

When the cornea starts to bulge outward, it creates a cone-like shape rather than the usual dome shape. As a result, you will notice changes to your vision. It particularly impacts your ability to see objects that are far from your current position. Other symptoms or signs of keratoconus include:

• Irregular astigmatism

• Double vision when closing one eye

• Halos around bright lights

• Ghost images, such as seeing triple images

• Blurry vision
  
  

During an eye exam at Trinity Eye Associates, we evaluate the risks and screen for the problem if it runs in your family or if you show signs of abnormal vision concerns. When you explain the symptoms that you notice, we also make sure to check for any further complications that suggest that the cornea is becoming cone-shaped.

Treatment in Oviedo

Keratoconus is usually caused by a thinning of collagen in the eyes. Since the fiber thins over time, the cornea starts to push out and create a cone shape. The underlying causes of collagen loss range from genetic predisposition to allergic reactions and rubbing the eyes.

Treatment solutions for the condition include:

• Wearing glasses to correct vision

• Wearing contact lenses, which are usually rigid gas-permeable lenses

• Surgical procedures, like cornea collagen cross-linking and cornea transplants
  
  

In general, an optometrist starts treatment with mild solutions like wearing glasses or corrective lenses. Over time, an individual usually transitions into more rigid contact lenses. Since the problem stems from a loss of collagen, using an implant that adds to the collagen can help slow down the progression of the eye condition over time.

Surgical procedures, like a cornea transplant, are the last resort for treatment. We usually recommend glasses and contacts as the primary treatment process to correct your vision as it changes over time. Surgical procedures are only recommended when your vision does not improve with glasses or other complications arise that require more severe corrective solutions.

Enjoy the opportunity to correct your vision and treat keratoconus by working with our Oviedo optometrists. Our team recognizes that you have specific concerns and we take measures to identify the problem early so that you can get appropriate treatment and lenses to help reduce the loss of vision over time and further slow down the changes. Contact us today at (407) 678-9151 to learn more.