Treatment of Keratoconus in Dubai by Experts
Keratoconus is a progressive eye condition whereby the normally round-shaped cornea, the transparent layer covering the front of the eye, starts thinning and bulges into the shape of a cone. This cone shape causes distortion in light as it enters your eye, leading to blurred or distorted vision. If left untreated, this can lead to severe impairment of your vision. Fortunately, effective treatments are available, especially in Dubai, by the specialist services offered by Dr. Rahul Raghav in the management of keratoconus.
Symptoms of Keratoconus
Keratoconus usually starts during adolescence or in the early adult years but can develop earlier. It progresses over many years. Symptoms depend upon the degree of distortion in the cornea but may include:
Blurred or distorted vision
Increased sensitivity to light (photophobia)
Difficulty seeing at night
Frequent changes in prescription for eyeglasses or contact lenses
Halos or glare around lights
Eye strain or headaches from squinting
As keratoconus progresses, the cornea thins and bulges, pushing outward and taking on a cone shape. As the disease progresses, the shape of the cornea becomes irregular, causing distorted vision that cannot be corrected with regular eyeglasses or soft contact lenses.
Causes of Keratoconus
It is not known what the specific cause of keratoconus is, although many researchers believe it may result from one or more of the following factors:
Genetics: You are at a higher risk for developing keratoconus if you have a family history of the condition.
Environmental: Chronic eye rubbing, allergies, and use of ill-fitting contact lenses can exacerbate keratoconus.
Underlying medical conditions: Conditions linked with keratoconus are Down syndrome, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and asthma.
How Keratoconus Affects Vision
Keratoconus dramatically changes how light enters the eye. As the cornea takes on an irregular shape, light entering the eye warps, distorts, or may even double. In the earliest stages of the condition, vision can be corrected with eyeglasses or soft contact lenses. However, as the condition advances, special contact lenses must be fitted, or surgery may be performed to preserve sight.
Changes in Vision Over Time
Early symptoms include very subtle visual changes, which are often confused with normal refractive errors like myopia and astigmatism. As the disease progresses, patients can experience constantly changing prescriptions where even on an updated prescription their vision remains blurred. Advanced stages may distort vision to an extent that even routine activities, such as reading and driving, may become difficult.
Available Treatment Options for Keratoconus
Although there is no cure for the disease, various treatment modalities can stop the progression of the disease and restore vision. The choice depends upon the stage of the disease and the needs of the individual patient.
1. Corneal Cross-Linking (CXL)
CXL is a minimally invasive surgical procedure that aims to strengthen the corneal tissue and arrest further thinning and bulging. During the procedure, eye drops containing riboflavin, or vitamin B2, are applied to the cornea, which is then exposed to UV light. Their interaction leads to a series of new bonds in the collagen fibers of the cornea, enhancing its strength and stability.
Benefits of Corneal Cross-Linking:
Arrests the progression of keratoconus in most patients
Minimally invasive with fast recovery
Can avoid or at least delay other much more invasive surgical procedures such as corneal transplantation
CXL works best when the disease is in its early stages and there is not significant thinning of the cornea. It has now become the standard treatment for stabilization of the disease and widely available in the practice of Dr. Rahul Raghav in Dubai.
2. Corneal Transplant
However, in cases where the disease has reached such an advanced stage and there is loss of vision that cannot be corrected by contact lenses or cross-linking, transplantation of the cornea may become necessary. In this surgery, which is known as keratoplasty, the old, deformed cornea is replaced with a healthy donor cornea.
Types of Corneal Transplants:
Penetrating Keratoplasty: Also known as PK, the whole thickness of the cornea is replaced.
Deep Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty (DALK): Only the outer and middle layers of the cornea are replaced, leaving the inner layer intact.
Corneal transplant surgery is very successful, and most patients enjoy a significant improvement in vision once they recover.
Dr. Rahul Raghav’s New Module in Keratoconus Treatment
Dr. Rahul Raghav’s premier center in Dubai offers a new advanced module for the treatment of keratoconus. This comprehensive approach integrates new diagnostic technology with tailor-made treatments for each patient. The center specializes in:
Customized Scleral Lenses: These lenses are considerably larger and gas-permeable, sitting on the sclera or the white part of the eye, vaulting over the cornea, therefore giving a lot more comfort and visual correction to the patient with keratoconus.
Hybrid lenses: These lenses have the combination of a hard central lens with a soft outer skirt. They provide comfort and stability with sharper vision.
Dr. Raghav’s practice is fully equipped with the latest technology to diagnose the condition of the cornea for the optimal treatment of each patient.
What Happens If You Have Keratoconus?
Early treatment will help slow the advancement of the disease and prevent serious vision loss. If left untreated, keratoconus can take a serious toll on quality of life and make daily activities impossible. In extreme cases, blindness can result, though these cases are extremely rare.
Keratoconus patients should receive regular eye tests to monitor the status of the condition and make adjustments in treatment as needed.
FAQ
Can Keratoconus affect the Equilibrium of a Person?
Yes, keratoconus might affect the equilibrium or balance of a person since the disease has fully set in. The brain may find it hard to develop correct visual data processing when there is an irregular shape of the cornea. Therefore, its impact on spatial awareness and balance will be poor. Properly fitted lenses can help in restoring balance since they provide clearer and more stable vision.
How Do You Explain Bilateral Cases of Keratoconus?
Bilateral keratoconus means that both eyes are involved. However, one eye may be more serious than the other one. Treatment for bilateral keratoconus requires intervention on an individual basis in each eye. This may involve a different type of lens being worn in each eye or multiple surgical interventions in one compared to the other eye, depending on the condition.
Do Most People Wear Different Glasses in Each Eye?
It would not be an unusual situation for a patient with keratoconus to be in a different type of lens in each eye. For example, one eye may require a scleral, while the other eye could be corrected with a hybrid, due to the severity of each eye. The aim here would be to offer the best vision and comfort for each eye.
Fundamentally, keratoconus may be an unmanageable disease but can easily be managed in this given time with the latest treatment modalities being adopted. “Meanwhile, in Dubai, the practice of Dr. Rahul Raghav provides comprehensive management of Keratoconus for making sure that each patient is getting the best care with the most effective treatment suited to each case.