KERATOCONUS

Course overview

KERATOCONUS (KCN) IS A PROGRESSIVE NON-INFLAMMATORY BILATERAL CORNEAL ECTATIC DISORDER. IT MANIFESTS WITH CHARACTERISTIC CONE-LIKE STEEPENING OF THE CORNEA ASSOCIATED WITH IRREGULAR STROMAL THINNING, RESULTING IN A CONE-LIKE PROTRUSION AND SIGNIFICANT LOSS OF VISION. PATIENTS TYPICALLY EXPERIENCE VARIABLE REDUCTIONS IN VISUAL ACUITY, IMAGE DISTORTION, AND INCREASED SENSITIVITY TO GLARE AND LIGHT. BECAUSE OF SIGNIFICANT ASYMMETRY, SPHEROCYLINDRICAL SPECTACLE LENSES TYPICALLY ARE NOT ABLE TO PROVIDE ADEQUATE VISION CORRECTION. KCN MAY REMAIN SUBCLINICAL AND MAY BE CLASSIFIED AS SLIGHTLY ASYMMETRIC OBLIQUE ASTIGMATISM. THIS ACTIVITY ILLUSTRATES THE EVALUATION AND TREATMENT OF KERATOCONUS AND REVIEWS THE ROLE OF INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM MEMBERS IN MANAGING THOSE WITH THIS CONDITION.