{"id":1626,"date":"2020-06-22T13:01:49","date_gmt":"2020-06-22T13:01:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.blog.kayawell.com\/?p=1626"},"modified":"2020-06-27T04:43:53","modified_gmt":"2020-06-27T04:43:53","slug":"keratoconus-symptoms-causes-risk-factors-and-prevention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/keratoconus-symptoms-causes-risk-factors-and-prevention","title":{"rendered":"Keratoconus- Symptoms, Causes, Risk Factors and Prevention"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Keratoconus\n(ker-uh-toe-KOH-nus) occurs when your cornea \u00e2\u20ac\u201d the clear, dome-shaped front\nsurface of your eye \u00e2\u20ac\u201d is thin and gradually booms in a cone shape outwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A\ncone-shaped cornea causes blurred vision, which may cause sensitivity to light\nwhich glare irritation. Keratoconus usually affects both eyes, and usually\nfirst affects people between the ages of 10 and 25. The condition can develop\nslowly for 10 years or longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the early\nstages of keratoconus, with glasses or soft contact lenses can correct vision\nproblems. Later, you may have to be fitted with rigid, gas permeable contact\nlenses or other types of lenses. If your condition is progressing to an\nadvanced stage, a cornea transplant may be required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF KERATOCONUS?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are\nmany keratoconus signs from you can find out, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Blurred vision or double vision (especially if it is in one eye\nonly) <\/li><li>Distortion (near and far) of objects in your vision, including\ndouble or triple &#8216;ghost images&#8217; <\/li><li>Halos (bright rings around a light source), flashing or heavy\nlights<\/li><li>Eye swelling<\/li><li>Eye redness or soreness<\/li><li>Light sensitivity<\/li><li>Headaches<\/li><li>Eyestrain<\/li><li>The inability to wear contact lenses<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\nexperience one or more of those symptoms, it might mean that you have\nkeratoconus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When to seek\nurgent medical help<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>See a doctor\nimmediately if you have any of these symptoms or signs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Blurred vision<\/li><li>Eye pain when seeing lights<\/li><li>Redness of your eyes<\/li><li>Nausea or vomiting<\/li><li>Pain in your eye.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_73 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\r\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\r\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\r\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\r\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/keratoconus-symptoms-causes-risk-factors-and-prevention\/#What_Causes_Keratoconus\" title=\"What Causes Keratoconus?\">What Causes Keratoconus?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/keratoconus-symptoms-causes-risk-factors-and-prevention\/#Risk_Factors\" title=\"Risk Factors\">Risk Factors<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/keratoconus-symptoms-causes-risk-factors-and-prevention\/#Prevention\" title=\"Prevention\">Prevention<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_Causes_Keratoconus\"><\/span>What Causes Keratoconus?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Small\nprotein fibers in the skin, called collagen, help hold the cornea in place to\nprevent it from bulging. When these fibers become weak, the shape cannot be\nheld and the cornea gradually becomes more cone-shaped. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A decrease\nin protective antioxidants in the cornea causes keratoconus. The corneal cells\nproduce damaging by-products, such as car exhaust. Normally, antioxidants get\nrid of them and protect the collagen fibers. When the levels of antioxidants\nare small, the collagen weakens, and the cornea booms out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keratoconus\nis not necessarily hereditary but often exists in families. If you have it and\nhave children, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a good idea to have their eyes checked for it starting at\nage 10. The condition is advancing faster in people with certain medical problems,\nincluding some allergic conditions. It could be related to chronic eye rubbing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keratoconus\nusually starts in the teenage years. Nonetheless, it can start in infancy or\npeople up to about 30 years old. It can happen in people 40 and older, but\nthat&#8217;s less common.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The changes\nin corneal shape can occur quickly or over many years. The changes can result\nin blurred vision, glare and halos at night, and the streaking of lights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The changes\ncan either stop at any moment or continue for decades. There is no way to\npredict how it will progress. Ultimately both eyes are affected in most people\nwho have keratoconus but not necessarily to the same extent. It generally\ndevelops first in one eye and then later in the other eye. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nstretched collagen fibers can cause serious scarring with severe keratoconus.\nWhen the back of the cornea tears, it will swell and take several months for\nthe swelling to go away. This often causes a large corneal scar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Risk_Factors\"><\/span>Risk Factors<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Eye rubbing, associated with atopy<\/li><li>Sleep apnea<\/li><li>Connective tissue disorders<\/li><li>Floppy eyelid syndrome[1]<\/li><li>Retinitis pigmentosa<\/li><li>Positive family history<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Various Complications of Keratoconus<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Complications\nof keratoconus may include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Vision loss that may lead to blindness<\/li><li>A change in the shape of the eye<\/li><li>Additional eye problems such as astigmatism<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Complications\nof a corneal transplant may include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Surgical wound infection<\/li><li>Rejection of the transplant<\/li><li>Secondary glaucoma<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Prevention\"><\/span>Prevention<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Generally,\nkeratoconus cannot be prevented. Early intervention can slow symptoms of\nprogression, through:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Regular and periodical eye tests for all family members above 10\nyears, mainly for families with keratoconus history and risk factors.<\/li><li>Avoiding rubbing your eyes due to allergies.<\/li><li>Keeping your eyes clean, without rubbing them.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <\/li><li>Warding off any eye irritation.<\/li><li>Protecting your eyes while swimming and in sports. <\/li><li>Following the instructions of the doctor, and reporting any noticeable\nprogress immediately. <\/li><li>Avoid unprescribed drugs, even if advised by a patient with\nkeratoconus.<\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Keratoconus (ker-uh-toe-KOH-nus) occurs when your cornea \u00e2\u20ac\u201d the clear, dome-shaped front surface of your eye \u00e2\u20ac\u201d is thin and gradually booms in a cone shape outwards. A cone-shaped cornea causes blurred vision, which may cause sensitivity to light which glare irritation. Keratoconus usually affects both eyes, and usually first affects people between the ages of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1637,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1626","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-healthcare"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1626","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1626"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1626\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1637"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1626"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1626"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kayawell.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1626"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}