Have you experienced an abrupt change of vision for the worse, that doesn’t seem to be fixed with either contacts or glasses? Do you have double or triple vision or do your eyes seem especially sensitive to light? If so, you may have keratoconus.
Fortunately, our eye doctors specialize in treatment of this condition using a technology known as orthokeratology, or ortho-k.
What are keratoconus and ortho-k? Take a look below to find out.
What is Keratoconus?
Keratoconus is an eye condition affecting the cornea, the clear front layer of the eye. This part of the eye is normally a round dome shape, and helps bend incoming light in order to focus it clearly at the back of the eye, where it is translated into visual information and sent to the brain to be interpreted.
With keratoconus, the cornea begins to thin and bulge into a dome shape, creating significant visual distortions and discomfort.
If you suspect you have keratoconus, visit our eye doctors for a comprehensive eye exam. We will take a look at your eyes and run a number of standard tests, including corneal topography, which involves a digital scan that creates a topographic map of your cornea similar to those created to show mountains and other features on a map of the Earth.
What is Orthokeratology?
Orthokeratology (ortho-k) is a type of non-invasive vision correction involving special contact lenses that you wear at night so that they can gently reshape your cornea as you sleep. The result is improved vision in the morning, without the need of glasses or contact lenses.
Because of their ability to reshape the cornea as you sleep, ortho-k lenses are sometimes used as a way to fix the cone shape that results from keratoconus.
Want to learn more about keratoconus and how ortho-k lenses can help? Contact our optometrists at today!
Q&A
Is orthokeratology permanent?
No. The effects of orthokeratology depend on the patient consistently wearing the lenses each night before they go to sleep. Though the vision improving effects of ortho-k lenses can last up to two days without them being worn, it is recommended to wear them every night if possible.
What causes keratoconus?
Unfortunately, it’s not entirely known what causes keratoconus, though there does seem to be some connection between a loss of collagen in the cornea and the development of keratoconus. Factors that increase risk include age, excessive eye rubbing, genetics, injury or chronic eye inflammation.