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Should I get a graft??

Posted: Sat 23 Mar 2019 5:16 pm
by HistoryGirl
I recently transferred to Moorfields and was seen by Mr Bruce Allan. My right eye has very good vision (I can generally read down to the 2nd or 3rd bottom lines in eye tests) and Mr Allan felt happy that the right eye is stable, not progressing and is unlikely to progress as I am now into my 30s.

My left eye has been incredibly poor since my twenties. It has always been the most uncomfortable for contact lens wear and this has only increased as the years went on. My left eye has scarring and last year, my previous doctor decided to try KeraRing intacts. The surgery went well and recovery has been fine but it hasn't particularly made any improvements. I am also still finding contacts in my left eye very hard to manage. When I saw Mr Allan, he said 'I can see what the doctor was trying to do but the only way to get good sight from this eye is by doing a corneal graft' I have another checkup with Mr Allan in July and he has asked me to think about it - so here I am thinking about it.

I have looked at MrAllan's website, as well as the NHS, RNIB and this forum. I am completely functional without any visual aids even with my rubbish left eye, so I am wondering if it is worth the potential risks of the corneal graft to get the improved sight in the bad eye.

What do you guys think?

Re: Should I get a graft??

Posted: Mon 25 Mar 2019 8:56 pm
by gsward
My take on your situation is with good vision in one eye it is mostly an upside to improve things in the other. If you get a good outcome you are then in a good place to cope with any change in your current "good" eye in the future. It also seems that time is on your side to get the full benefit of the graft which might be 18 months.

Re: Should I get a graft??

Posted: Mon 13 May 2019 9:32 pm
by Asif
There's always risks with any sort of surgery. A graft won't cure keratoconus but the aim is to improve the vision and it's likely you'll still need glasses or similar contact lenses afterwards. It will take a long time for your vision to improve and somewhat stabilise following a graft. A keratoconic cornea is very irregular. A grafted eye will also be irregular but in a different way so it's likely there will still be some 'ghosting' of objects, especially in low light. You're lucky that you have very good vision in one eye.

Re: Should I get a graft??

Posted: Tue 14 May 2019 10:06 am
by CrippsCorner
Tough one - I'm in a similar but not exactly the same situation. Ultimately, I have chosen not to risk a transplant in my bad eye - As I can 'get by' without needing one. Sounds like something I don't really want to have to go through unless absolutely necessary.

Re: Should I get a graft??

Posted: Fri 31 May 2019 9:37 pm
by Green
Don't get a graft unless you have to