UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

Can anyone clarify for me, is KC hereditory or not?
Over the years I have never received the same answer.
What worries me is that both my daughters are now teenagers (16 and 15 years old). The eldest suffers with allergies such as asthma and hayfever and has always had very sensitive eyes. She is forever rubbing them which worries me sick (I was once told KC affects people with allergies and sensitive eyes. I fit this criteria, I have always suffered with eczema and do have very sensitive skin. However we cannot trace anyone else in our family that ever had a eye problem. I pray that my daughters will not be blighted with this condition, I would feel so guilty and just dont know how I'd deal with the guilt. Im hoping your going to tell me that none of your children have developed KC.

By the way thanks for the warm welcome from everyone since joining the forum. Lovely to speak to people who understand
Libby

Libby

The honest answer is "nobody knows". There are some indications that KC may have hereditary co-factors and many people now believe that it probably does.

All we can do for our children is make sure that they are aware of the pitfalls that may lie ahead. If they have itchy eyes, then they can irrigate them with artificial tears rather than rub them.

In the end, if there is a hereditary component in KC, then that is the one thing you can do nothing about.

Andrew

Most the research I have seen strobgly suggests tha a 'predisposition to KC' is heredatory and is a result of about 4 recessive genes coming together. It is because 4 genes are needed that means KC being passed from one generation to the next is less common than we would expect for a genetic condition.

The triggers have been suggested as eye rubbing, but I would count this as eye trauma as there are many here who got diagnosed after a minor head injury such as my self after two black eyes! Other triggers which I think is more likely is hormonal which is why it is seen more in teenagers at first diagnoses and as has been reported here as getting much worse during pregnancy in women.

Where asthema and exzema are linked to KC usually as a result of other allergies I think this relates to eye trauma as there are comonalities in the surfactant that helps distribute a lipid lubricating component of tears with the surfactant in lungs that most asthmatics are deficcient in and is similar to a component in sweat that helps us cool without excessive drying of the skin. Poor lubrication of the cornea makes our eyes feel scratchy and we rub them so causing trauma.

Libby - have you seen the Summer 2006 newsletter on the home page? That includes a summary of a talk given to the Group by Mr Tuft at Moorfields who is doing a genetic study of KC and should help to reassure you that the chances of your daughters having the condition are small.
Anne

No one in my famuily has ever had even short sightedness,let alone KC,both my sets of grandparents had excellent vision,even in their 80's and according to them their parents also had excellent vision,no one else that i know of from my brothers right through my cousins etc have any real trouble with their eyes either,but then there's me with my pair,which are,at best,utter sh*te,i had KC diagnosed when i was about 25-25 but i guess it started one or two years earlier,up until which point i had 20/20 vision,more so than anyone i know,i was a right 'hawkeye',now 8 years on my eyes are in a right state.

For reference,i've never come across anything in life i've been allergic to and never had any other conditions,not even hay fever,the only bad reactions i have are to spiders,they scare me stupid,and alcohol,which seems to make me mouthy,stupid,uncoordinated and careless!

As my Mum had very mild KC this is a question I used to ask every doctor I saw. None could ever give me an answer and I have long since stopped asking.

Like you Libby my own main concern is about the chances of my daughters having it, but I am a lot more relaxed about it now than I was this time last year. It's like everything else with KC, a case of wait and see.

From reading the posts on here many people seem to have their own ideas about the causes, which are usually based on their own experiences. I always took it as read that my KC was hereditary but since joining here I'm now not as sure as I was.

Thanks everyone for your opinions and info.
I guess I have to relax and think "whatever will be will be". If my worse fears come true at least my daughters will be in a lot better position than I was. They have me as support plus this forum of people with advice and reassurance.