Bilgehan Sezgin Asena, Head Physician, Ophthalmologist at Kaşkaloglu Eye Hospital said that people who rub their eyes a lot are in the risk group for keratoconus disease, which causes visual impairment.
Stating that the disease begins between the ages of 15-25, Ophthalmologist Asena stated that it is difficult to detect keratoconus disease in the early stages.
Giving information about the disease, Bilgehan Sezgin Asena, Head Physician, Ophthalmologist at Kaşkaloglu Eye Hospital said, “We can say that keratoconus is a youth disease. It usually starts and progresses between the ages of 15-25. However, we can also see it before the age of 15. Keratoconus is a corneal disease. The cornea is the transparent layer at the front of the eye. In keratoconus disease, there is tapering and thinning in this layer. This tapering and thinning is progressive and causes vision to gradually deteriorate. In this disease, there is a structural deformity of the cornea. The word keratoconus means chronic cornea. In terms of prevalence, it is seen in 1 in 2 thousand people.”
Early diagnosis is important
Noting that the cause of keratoconus is not fully known, Bilgehan Sezgin Asena, Head Physician, Ophthalmologist gave the following information, “The disease progresses until the age of 35-40 and stops on its own after these ages. The cause of keratoconus is not fully known. The most important factor that we know to predispose to this disease is constant eye rubbing due to allergic eye structure. People with keratoconus usually have an allergic eye structure and have a history of constantly rubbing their eyes since childhood. However, there is a structural eye disorder of the cornea. Although constant eye rubbing can be a trigger, the real problem is the structural defect of the cornea. We cannot say that this disease is exactly a genetic disease. Although there is a predisposition, research shows that only 10% to 20% of the patients are genetic.”
Treatment process
Recording that the progression of the disease can be stopped with cross-linking treatment, Dr. Bilgehan Sezgin Asena stated that early diagnosis is important in treatment.
Bilgehan Sezgin Asena continued as follows, “With the cross-linking technique, the tissue called cornea can be strengthened by applying ultraviolet rays using a special drop. Thanks to this reinforcement, we can stop the progressive thinning and tapering of the cornea. The treatment has a success rate of over 90 percent. For this, the disease should not progress too much and early diagnosis is important. After the current situation is maintained, the use of glasses or lenses to increase vision can be beneficial in the early period. More rigid contact lenses can increase vision levels. Recently, keratoconus-specific hybrid lenses have been produced and these can provide good results for patients. We recommend corneal ring surgery to patients who cannot use lenses. With this surgery, a result similar to the effect provided by lenses can be achieved in vision. In very advanced cases, the treatment option is corneal transplant surgery, which we call Keratoplasty.”
