UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

Does anyone still have their stitches in a long time after their graft?

I have a 9mm very asymmetrical graft. The bottom touches the white of my eye and the top skirts my pupil. Due to the distance at the top from any blood vessels it has not really healed. 18 months post surgery and I still have 11 out of 16 stitches in.

One option I have is to just leave them indefinitely. So I was wondering if anyone one on here has had stitches in for several years and if so has your eye tolerated a lens on top of the stitches? Most likely a soft one.

Hi - most of my (individual) stitches were in place without problems for approx 3 years, at which point they started to break in quick succession over several months, and were removed as and when they failed. I was told at the time that they eventually start to break down and become brittle? I've never tried lenses though - been lucky enough to get by with glasses once it settled down, although I do have a high level of astigmatism.

I had the same experience as Rob - the stitches that were left in for a long time started to snap at the 3 yr mark. The first one that broke was when I was on holiday in deepest rural France, miles from a hospital and of course I had no idea what had happened but was in severe pain with that one. Straight to A&E when I got back to the UK a couple of days later! Subsequent burst stitches weren't nearly as painful and I was able to go to A&E straightaway.
As for contact lenses over stitches, I had no problem tolerating a lens, though I did have a couple of rejection episodes which may have had nothing to do with the fact that I was wearing lenses. And nothing that some extra steroid drops didn't quickly fix. I was wearing rpgs - a scleral lens which doesn't touch the cornea might be better?
Good luck and let us know how you get on.