Cornea and Dry eyes
Introduction
The cornea is your eye’s clear, protective outer layer. Along with the sclera (the white of your eye), it serves as a barrier against dirt, germs, and other things that can cause damage. Fun fact: Your cornea can also filter out some of the sun's ultraviolet light. But not much, so your best bet to keep it healthy is to wear a pair of wraparound sunglasses when you're outdoors.
It also plays a key role in vision. As light enters your eye, it gets refracted, or bent, by the cornea’s curved edge. This helps determine how well your eye can focus on objects close-up and far away.
If your cornea is damaged by disease, infection, or an injury, the resulting scars can affect your vision. They might block or distort light as it enters your eye.
Structure of Cornea
To understand potential problems, it helps to know the parts of the cornea. Is has three main layers:
Epithelium. The outermost layer. It stops outside matter from getting into your eye. It also absorbs oxygen and nutrients from tears.
Stroma. The middle and thickest layer lies behind the epithelium. It’s made up mostly of water and proteins that give it an elastic but solid form.
Endothelium. This is a single layer of cells on the very back of the stroma. The aqueous humor, a clear fluid in the front chamber of your eye, is in constant contact with this layer. It works like a pump. The stroma absorbs excess liquid and the endothelium pulls it out. Without this function, the stroma would become waterlogged. Your cornea would get opaque and hazy, and so would your vision.
What are the symptoms of cornea problems?
To understand potential problems, it helps to know the parts of the cornea. Is has three main layers:
The term corneal disease refers to many conditions that affect this part of your eye. These include infections, tissue breakdown, and other disorders you get from your parents.
Your cornea usually heals itself after most minor injuries or infections. But during the healing process, you might notice symptoms like:
Endothelium. This is a single layer of cells on the very back of the stroma. The aqueous humor, a clear fluid in the front chamber of your eye, is in constant contact with this layer. It works like a pump. The stroma absorbs excess liquid and the endothelium pulls it out. Without this function, the stroma would become waterlogged. Your cornea would get opaque and hazy, and so would your vision.
What Conditions Can Cause Damage?
Keratitis : This inflammation sometimes occurs after viruses, bacteria, or fungi get into the cornea. They can get in after an injury and cause infection, inflammation, and ulcers. If your contact lenses cause an eye injury, that, too, can lead to keratitis.
Symptoms to look out for:
Treatment usually includes antibiotic or antifungal eye drops. Some people need antiviral drugs and steroid eye drops.
Ocular Herpes ( Herpes of the Eye): Like fever blisters, this viral infection can come back again and again. The main cause is the herpes simplex virus I (HSV I), the same one that leads to cold sores. It can also result from the sexually transmitted herpes simplex virus II (HSV II) that causes genital herpes.
This condition creates sores on the cornea. Over time, the inflammation can spread deeper into your cornea and eye.
There’s no cure, but you can often control it with antiviral drugs or steroid eyedrops.
Herpes Zoster (Shingles) : You can only get it if you had chickenpox. The itchy illness goes away, but the virus that causes it doesn’t leave your body. It stays in your nerves, but it isn’t active. Later in life, it can travel down those nerves and infect specific body parts like your eye. A shingles rash on the face can cause sores on your cornea. They usually heal by themselves, but antiviral medication and topical steroid eyedrops can ease inflammation.
Anyone exposed to the chickenpox virus can get shingles, but chances are higher for:
See your doctor if you have any symptoms. If you’re over 50, get the vaccine.
Corneal Degenerations
There are several types. These diseases can cause problems with the cornea’s structure:
Keratoconus : This disease thins your cornea and changes its shape. It usually starts blurring vision during teenage years and worsens during early adulthood. Changes to the cornea’s curvature can create mild to severe distortion, called astigmatism, and usually nearsightedness. The disease can also cause swelling, scars on your cornea, and vision loss. Your night vision could get so bad you can’t drive after dark.
Causes include:
Eye diseases like retinitis pigmentosa, retinopathy of prematurity, and vernal keratoconjunctivitis, along with Down syndrome, osteogenesis imperfecta, Addison's disease, Leber's congenital amaurosis, and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome are associated with keratoconus.
At first, glasses or soft contacts can solve the problem. As the disease goes on, you may need to wear rigid gas permeable lenses. For people with early keratoconus, a procedure called corneal crosslinking can be performed. During the procedure, the doctor instils riboflavin eyedrops and the eyes get exposure to small amounts of UV light. This procedure often prevents worsening of keratoconus and can prevent the need for corneal surgery.
A small number of people with keratoconus will need a cornea transplant. During this procedure, the doctor will replace your damaged cornea with a donated one. This operation is usually successful. But you probably will still need glasses or contacts to see clearly.
Corneal Dystrophies : There are more than 20 of these diseases. They cause structural problems within your cornea. Some of the most common are:
Map-dot-fingerprint dystrophy. This affects the back layer of your epithelium, which separates it from the stroma. It grows irregularly (thick in some places, thin in others). That causes irregularities in your cornea that look like maps, dots, and small fingerprints.
It usually affects adults over 40. It’s usually painless, doesn’t affect your vision, and gets better without treatment. But sometimes the epithelial layer can get worn down and expose the nerves that line your cornea. That causes severe pain, especially when you wake up in the morning. It can also change your cornea's normal curve and cause astigmatism, nearsightedness, or farsightedness.
As your cornea changes, your vision may get blurry. You may also notice:
Treatments include an eye patch, a soft contact lens "bandage," eyedrops, ointments, "tacking it down," or removing the loose layer. This is a minor procedure your doctor can do in her office.
Fuchs' dystrophy : This inherited condition causes a slow breakdown of endothelial cells and the swelling of the cornea. This makes it harder to remove water from your stroma. Your eye swells and your vision gets worse. Haze and small blisters may appear on the surface.
Signs of the disease may appear in your 30s or 40s, but it takes about 20 years for it to affect your vision. Women get it more often than men.
An early sign: You wake up with a blurred vision that slowly clears during the day. As the disease worsens, swelling becomes more consistent and vision stays blurry.
Treatment includes:
Symptoms may go away with treatment, but over time you may need a corneal transplant. Results of this surgery are usually good, but the condition can come back.
How Are Cornea Problems Diagnosed?
You’ll need a thorough exam by an eye doctor (Ophthalmologist).
How can You Prevent Them?
Follow strict hygiene guidelines if you wear contact lenses. Improper use is the main reason for developing corneal diseases. That will lower your chances of corneal infections related to their use. Don’t sleep with contact lenses in, even if they’re FDA approved for it. This habit greatly raises your risk of cornea infections.
You can’t prevent diseases that you get from your parents (like dystrophies). But you can hang onto your vision if you find and treat them early.
Dry eye
Dry eye disease is a common condition that occurs when your tears aren't able to provide adequate lubrication for your eyes.
You can’t prevent diseases that you get from your parents (like dystrophies). But you can hang onto your vision if you find and treat them early.
New technology in treating dry eyes
The Dry Eye Analyzer is the safest and most effective way to diagnose the cause of irritability within the patient’s eye.
This device examines the dryness of the eye by combining infrared imaging, interference light measurement, and multistep magnification technology. The complete examination includes the analysis of:
Treatment
intense Pulsed Light (IPL) Therapy, which has been traditionally used as a cosmetic procedure for treating facial skin conditions, effectively treats chronic dry eye and Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (MGD). In fact, IPL Therapy is among the more groundbreaking treatments for dry eye.
How Does IPL Treatment Work?
Intense Pulsed Light Therapy delivers pulses of light to liquefy and release oils that have hardened and clogged the meibomian glands in the eyelids. IPL also reduces eyelid redness and stimulates healthy gland .
Following that, a thin layer of cooling gel will be applied to the treatment area and a small device will administer the pulses of light to the region around the eyelids IPL is unique in that it targets the source – the blood vessels surrounding the glands — enabling them to secrete oils naturally and resume their moisturizing function. This not only relieves symptoms, but also slows the progression of chronic dry eyes
Cornea of the Eye Specialist in Bangalore
The cornea is the transparent front component of the eye that covers the iris, pupil, and anterior chamber, helping to concentrate light and protect the eye. It refracts light and helps the eye focus on objects.
Saai Eye Hospital believes that understanding the intricacies of our eyes is critical. Our area of expertise is the cornea, which is frequently overlooked but critically important. Here's why it matters and how we're contributing.
Decoding the Cornea
The cornea, which is sometimes compared to a window, is the eye's transparent front layer. Its major role is to refract incoming light while protecting it from dirt, bacteria, and other contaminants. In essence, it functions as our eyes' natural lens, concentrating and directing light onto the retina. Any imperfections in its shape or clarity can interrupt this process, resulting in visual distortions.
Decoding the Cornea
The cornea, which is sometimes compared to a window, is the eye's transparent front layer. Its major role is to refract incoming light while protecting it from dirt, bacteria, and other contaminants. In essence, it functions as our eyes' natural lens, concentrating and directing light onto the retina. Any imperfections in its shape or clarity can interrupt this process, resulting in visual distortions.
Some of the corneal challenges that we address
Some of the corneal challenges that we address
At Saai, we are more than just a hospital. We are a shelter for individuals seeking clarity, both physically and metaphorically. Our approach is holistic, incorporating modern diagnostics, professional solutions, and patient-centered care.
Navigating the Future with Clear Vision
Corneal health is complex, but with Saai Eye Hospital by your side, the road gets easier. Our commitment extends beyond treatment. We prioritize preventive care, patient education, and ongoing innovation in the sector.
Corneal Specialist at Saai Eye Hospital.
At Saai Eye Hospital in Bangalore, our professional cornea specialist delivers unique knowledge to solve vision disorders, offering personalized care and cutting-edge therapies for optimal eye health. Trust our staff to provide compassionate and effective solutions while safeguarding the safety of your eyes at all times.
Your eyes are your window into the world. Make sure they have the finest view. At Saai Eye Hospital, we don't only restore sight; we also rekindle the thrill of viewing the world in all its glory. Come, let us imagine a clearer tomorrow together.
What is keratoconus?
Keratoconus is characterized by the thinning of the cornea and irregularities of the cornea’s surface. The cornea is the clear, outer layer at the front of your eye. The middle layer is the thickest part of the cornea, mostly made up of water and a protein called collagen. Collagen makes the cornea strong and flexible and helps keep its regular, round shape. This healthy cornea focuses light so you can see clearly. With keratoconus, the cornea thins and bulges into an irregular cone shape, resulting in vision loss.
Keratoconus generally begins at puberty and progresses into the mid-30s. There is no way to predict how quickly the disease will progress, or if it will progress at all. Keratoconus typically affects both eyes, with one being more severely affected than the other.
What causes keratoconus?
Although keratoconus has been studied for decades, it remains poorly understood. The definitive cause of keratoconus is unknown, though it is believed that the predisposition to develop the disease is present at birth. A common finding in keratoconus is the loss of collagen in the cornea. This may be caused by some imbalance between production and destruction of the corneal tissue by the corneal cells.
What causes keratoconus?
Many keratoconus patients are unaware they have the disease. The earliest symptom is a slight blurring of vision or progressively poor vision that is not easily corrected.
Other symptoms of keratoconus include:
What are the risk factors for keratoconus?
The following may increase the risk of developing keratoconus:
Other symptoms of keratoconus include:
How is keratoconus diagnosed?
In addition to a complete medical history and eye exam, your eye care professional may perform the following tests to diagnose keratoconus:
How is keratoconus treated?
Current treatment for keratoconus includes glasses in the earliest stages to treat near-sightedness and astigmatism. As keratoconus progresses and worsens, glasses are no longer capable of providing clear vision, and patients need to wear a contact lens, usually a hard contact lens.
Intermediate Stages
Progressive keratoconus can be treated by corneal collagen cross-linking. This one-time, in-office procedure involves the application of a vitamin B solution to the eye, which is then activated by ultraviolet light for about 30 minutes or less. The solution causes new collagen bonds to form, recovering and preserving some of the cornea’s strength and shape.
While the treatment cannot make the cornea entirely normal again, it can keep vision from getting worse and, in some cases, may improve vision. The procedure may require the removal of the thin outer layer of the cornea (epithelium) to allow the riboflavin to more easily penetrate the corneal tissue.
Cross-linking was approved as a treatment for keratoconus by the FDA in April 2016, after clinical trials showed that it stopped or produced a mild reversal in bulging of the cornea within three to 12 months after the procedure.
Advanced Stages
Corneal ring: With severe keratoconus, a standard contact lens may become too uncomfortable to wear. Intacs are implantable, plastic, C-shaped rings that are used to flatten the surface of the cornea, allowing improved vision. They may also allow a better contact lens fit. The procedure takes about 15 minutes.
Corneal transplant: In a corneal transplant, a donor cornea replaces the patient’s damaged cornea. Corneal transplants are often performed on an outpatient basis and take about an hour to complete. Vision usually remain blurry for about three to six months after the transplant, and medication must be taken to avoid transplant rejection. In almost all cases, glasses or a contact lens are necessary to provide the clearest vision after transplant surgery.
NEXT STEP
Before you agree to the test or the procedure make sure you know:
Contact
Ph- +91-9558055510
[email protected]
No.141/142 SAAI EYE HOSPITAL Near Rohan Mihir Apartment, an
d NEW RAGAM BAKERY, AECS Layout - C Block, Kundalahalli,
Marathahalli, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560037