Can CL make KC worse??

[mediumgroove]

Hi, long time KCster first time poster! KC diagnosed at 21 and between 24 to 34 everything nice and stable with RGP CLs. One eye very mild KC and the other more signifcant but still mild enough for glasses to work for me half the day the CLs are out. A year ago I switch lenses to what I assume are the hybrids, soft outside hard inside and although the CLs fit great and the vision is A1 there are 2 problems: 1) after 4-5 hrs I HAVE to take them out, (2) after I take them out my vision is much worse than before I put them in. The seocnd problem would ease after a while but now after a year of wearing them I've noticed that my non CL vision (in both eyes) has got markedly worse. I checked out my prescription and I was told my vision has deteriorated maybe 50%. I still wear my glasses but they are of limited value, when the CLs are in my vision is still great. The issue I have is that before I switched lenses everything seemed stable and now having changed, things seems to have gone downhill relatively quickly. I am back in to see the professionals soon but wondering whether anyone else out there has had a similar exerience? Thanks

[Andrew MacLean]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

I think that it is probably now widely agreed that the wrong contact lenses, or lenses that are poorly fitting, do cause damage to the already weakened cornea. This is why optometrists are so diligent in calling back people with KC and assiduous in their examination of the eye each time.

It is also the reason for there being such a wide range of lens types and lens materials available. One of the optometrists who post on the forum once described keratoconus as a 'bespoke condition', meaning that no two of us are alike! The lens that suits me may not suit you.

In your place I would go back early to see my optometrist and explain the difficulties you are having. The optometrist may try a different fit of the same sort of lens, or may even try another sort of lens altogether. I hope you manage to get a good fit that gives you good vision.

All the best

Andrew

[GarethB]

A reduction in lens wear time can be due to a change in prescription or an intolerance to lenses.

You may still find that once you take your lenses out that you vision appears to be worse. This isn't don to the KC as such but due to the fact you brain has got used to seeing the worl clearly and then once the lenses are removed the change is very dramatic and it takes time for the brain to reacclimatise.

I find this much worse now that I am able to wear lenses all my waking hours compared to the 4 - 8 hours it used to be. One way I overcame that was to start the day with my worst eye wearing a lesn and no lens in the better eye. Come middel of the day I would spend lunch with no lenses to give my ees a rest and then put a lens in my better eye and no lens in the worse one.

I could then get perfect monocular vision for 8 - 16 hours each day. It does take time to get used to, for me it was about 3 weeks.