ICL for Keratoconus

Implantable contact lens (Staar Surgical, Switzerland) is another tool that is being used to help patients of keratoconus with large refractive errors.

This has shown itself to be a useful method in helping patients with advanced keratoconus and high myopia with cylindrical errors (usually in excess of -10 Diopters with upto -6Diopters cylinder)

It helps this class of patients improve the uncorrected visual acuity and allows use fo glasses for the small residual errors.

However, it may not take away all the visual deficits. As we now understand, it can not take care of the higher order aberrations and thus the quality of vision still remains less than ideal. However, it a great step from not being able to do anything at all.

Is cross linking the only management a keratoconus patient needs?

With the arrival of Corneal Cross Linking for Keratoconus, there seems to be an increasing thought process that all that a keratoconus patient is to get C3R procedure done!!

I have been a service provider in the field of Keratoconus for the last several years and have experience in cross linking too. It seems important to point out to both, patients as well as doctors, that C3R provides only one more tool in the care of keratoconus affected individuals. The role of other modalities like contact lenses, intracorneal rings, Laser related surface treatments, ICL insertion, etc remains useful in visual restoration.

It is important to understand that C3R prevents further deterioration in vision (may be some improvement in vision too) and we still need the other modalities.

Thus physicians interested in this field should acquire a complete understanding of this complex interplay in each patient.

Similarly keratoconus affected individuals should select their centers of care with the overall care in mind. C3R alone is not the panacea for keratoconus.