eye sight test

[debby dennis]

hi, i've just been told that i have keratoconus. myright eye was spotted by the optician and when i went on wednesday i was told that it is also in my left eye.
i don't need to do anything but stay with my optician as my sight is ok.
i'm still a littled bit shocked and still trying to find out information, such as how often should i have my eyes tested now?

[John Smith]

Hi Debby, and welcome to the forum.

I'd say that at the moment you don't have anything to worry about.

Your optician has spotted the problem and is keeping you under observation, which is probably all you need right now.

I'd be happiest with follow-up checks either every 6-12 months; but your optician is probably the best judge of that.

Your optician though shouldn't really be diagnosing you with KC (they are allowed to suggest that they think you may have it), and you should be referred via your GP to a hospital ophthalmolohist to confirm your KC. I'd make sure that happens becuase then you are "in the system".

Keep us posted on how you progress if at all - remember that your KC may already be stable, and may not affect your vision more than it is now.

[Sweet]

Hello Debbie and welcome to the forum!

I'd second what John has already said in that you should be seen by a hospital opthalmologist as they will be able to confirm the diagnosis and follow your care in case you need anymore treatment, but hopefully it shouldn't come to that!

Do stay with your optician though as they will be able to provide you with glasses and or contact lenses should you need them and regular eye tests every 6 months to a year just to keep a check on things.

Take care and please don't worry about it, we are all very friendly here so you are more than welcome to drop by and ask some questions anytime!

Sweet X x X

[jayuk]

Debby

Just on the back of the previous posts, can I ask what your optician said to you with regards to KC?...

6-12 months would be the usual period to have checks done; but you may find that this will be upto you to ensure occurs; unless you get yourself into a Contact Lens clinic....

J

[Andrew MacLean]

Hello Debbie

Welcome to the forum and to the happy few who live with keratoconus.

Did I read your post right: your optician spotted KC in your right eye, and then on Wednesday you went to the Ophtholmologist at your local hospital and had the diagnosis confirmed for your left eye, also?

Andrew

[Lynn White]

Andrew,

I think she meant the optician also confirmed she had it in the other eye.

This is a tricky subject you are all raising here. Yes John and others are technically right that strictly optoms cannot diagnose, only recognise but that situation in itself is beginning to change as the health service tries to devolve more health care into local communities.

Suggestions to get referred immediately are also based on your own more advanced conditions. The KC detected in Debby may well be very mild and may not even progress or in fact may have already halted.

The optician is behaving perfectly properly in monitoring the situation to see what is happening. In many areas, if an optom refers a mild case of KC, they are often discharged without diagnosis. This has happened to me many times. Partly this is because we do not have any real classifications for mild KC and hospitals anyway only need to get involved when management by the optometrist has become difficult.

So, Debby, the proper person to address your question is your own optometrist. He or she is the only one here who knows what your eyes are like and can advise you accordingly. In any case, you are perectly entitled to go back at any time you think your vision may have changed.

So it would be a good idea to check back with your optician first and then get back to us here if there is more you want to know!

Lynn

[debby dennis]

hi
thanks for your kind words. i was referred by my optician in february and saw the hospital specialist on wednesday who confirmed the condition, but said that because my sight is ok, that he'd discharge me. but to make sure that i kept with the same optician. i originally had a sight test done in september but my glasses broke in february and had to have my eyes retested due to them losing my records. that when they discovered my sight had changed in 4 months.
the only thing that i know is that i shouldn't have laser surgery done as it will make things worse in the long run.

[Lynn White]

Hi Debby!

Well glad we got all that sorted out hehe...

If you have mild KC you are often discharged by hospital as they only intervene if you cannot manage with glasses or standard contact lenses. So thats good news!

You need to stay with the same optician otherwise there is no continuity of records and it can't be recorded easily how much or little your eyes change.

You need now to go back to your optician and tell them what the consultant said. Because it is not automatically routine that the hospital will write to both your GP and optician, your optometrist may need to get details from either the GP or hospital about your eyes.

Then you need to discuss with your optician how often you shoud be checked up.

We are putting together some FAQ about KC and its development etc and some of the posts are on this and earlier pages, so have a browse and come back with more questions when you have learnt more.

What I will say at the present is that having KC does not automatically mean it will progress to the point you have the difficulties that other members have here. If your prescription has changed significantly recently, as it seems to have done, then it is probably active at the moment but not that far advanced as you have been discharged by the hospital.

As your condition is monitored by the optician, then more idea will be gained as to what is happening.

As I said, read the posts and the articles on the front page to get a better idea of what KC means.

Lynn

[GarethB]

Hi Debby

The FAQ section is inits early stages so in no particular order.

Basically most KC is managed by glasses or contact lenses. KC can stabilise as quick as it can deteriorate, so your sudden change could well be a on of blip and glasses may well serve you for the rest of a long and healthy life.

[Andrew MacLean]

Debbie

thank you for confrming that I had not completely misunderstood your original post.

Andrew