Keratoconus may be considered as a disease that does not bother the person very much in the first stages or whose symptoms are not immediately understood for the first stages. However, the disease is a progressive disease and the person’s vision continues to be badly affected over time. We can also consider this as a process towards a bad course. So, what happens if we fail to recognize keratoconus in the later stages? In other words, what happens if keratoconus is diagnosed late?
Late Diagnosis of Keratoconus
First of all, it is important to understand the disease well. Keratoconus is an eye condition that occurs when the shape of the cornea, one of the most important parts for vision, is distorted. In order to understand how important the cornea is for vision, it is necessary to understand its function. The cornea, which is indispensable for vision, refracts and focuses light and transmits it to the visual center, ensuring a healthy vision. The deformity that occurs with keratoconus causes the cornea to fail to fulfill this task in a healthy way. The cornea becomes thinner and tapers outwards. As a result, it is not able to refract light properly and healthy vision is not possible.
If we have understood so far, let’s go back to the main issue. The progression of keratoconus means that the cornea becomes thinner and its shape deteriorates. In this case, blurred vision and even edema may occur due to excessive thinning. If the diagnosis is delayed and appropriate treatment is not applied, vision will gradually decrease with all these effects and eventually the patient will face a serious vision problem. If the disease reaches the end stage, there is no possibility of using special contact lenses or strengthening the cornea with corneal cross-linking.
If the diagnosis is too late, the only option for the patient is corneal transplantation, i.e. keratoplasty. In this treatment, the patient’s cornea is removed and replaced with a cornea from a cadaver. Considering all these, we understand that keratoconus is a disease that should be given importance and intervened early. By consulting specialists and having regular eye examinations, you minimize the risk of late diagnosis. Of course, symptoms are also important here. You can see what the most common symptoms are in our content right here.
