UK Keratoconus Self-Help and Support Association

Hi eveyone, I was wondering if you could help me with something.
After years of not doing anything re: my bilateral KC I eventually got round to going to my GP to request a referral to the local opthalmology department. The reason was after years of stability my vision in my left (good) eye has begun to deteriorate. Anyway as the GP I saw didn't have a clue what KC is he referred me to the emergency eye clinic for an appointment two days later.
So yesterday I turn up, have my vision tested (the usual results: virtually blind in my right eye, so so in my left) and then get examined by one of the junior doctors. After much umming and arring she goes and gets the consultant and he examines my eyes. After a few questions he states he can't understand why my vision in my left eye is better than the vision in my right eye as the KC is more pronounced in the left.
So now I'm confused. Since ?1994 when my KC stabilised, I've had severe KC in my right eye with the accompanying poor vision. My left eye has been my 'good' eye but this consultant said that topographically the KC is worse in my left eye. Has anyone here heard of this before?
Anyway I got a referral to the cornea clinic which the doctor implied would be quite soon, so this little enigma will be cleared up then. In the meantime anyone here got any suggestions?
Thanks for reading.
Dave.

hi david
i'm afraid i'mnot medically trained in any way, however just a few thoughts.
it may be that even if one cone is steeper than the other , one may be more irregularly shaped or even in a more awkward position on your cornea causing light and therefore images to be diffracted onto your lens differently in each eye, i,m sure that when you have seen a specialist KC consultant they will be able to give you a clearer idea as to whats happening and explain various management solutions to you. you say you have been stable for some time andfeel it has now become a little active again. you are going in the right direction by seeking a referal back to the clinic and the good news is that over the last few years KC technology and understanding has improved somewhat.
you dont say where you are going for refferal. is it a hospital, clinic or indeed private

good luck and hang in there
mike

David,

The other factor is the brains ability to decode the fuzzy image.

My latest battle with KC was so gradual in its onset that my vision deteriorated at the same rate my brain could adapt. I think this is why despite vision in my right eye to class me legally blind I can still cope fine with or without lenses.

David,

What it could very well be is that even if the "cone" is advanced, it may be partially or "mostly" not in your field of view... it may not be central over the pupil.

So you may see quite good and still have advanced KC.

Thanks folks. So what your saying is that it's possible for KC to be actually worse than it appears to the sufferer? Haha
Well I never knew that. I always assumed the cone would be roughly over the iris. I guess I'll have to wait till I get a topographical scan and they can tell me whats what.
Mike, the eye clinic is at York Hospital as is the cornea clinic. The junior doctor who did my initial examination was very good, but I was surprised to learn she hadn't heard of C3-R.
Cheers.
Dave.

David,

My KC is roughly in the 11 O'Clock position, quite near the outer edge of the iris.

Central cones are more common, but we are all different.

I can associate with that David. I've been told for quite a while now that my right eye is the worst one. The vision is definitely worse out of the left though..
Even though neither of my RGP lenses is comfortable the right is the one i've had the most pain with, which I guess makes sense.

I reckon the slower the deterioration the better the brain adjusts, when I was first diagnosed the optom was surprised I had not noticed the difference but I was a teen and raring to go.
Conversely when it rapidly deteriorated between 16-19 I couldn't cope.
Maybe the severity of the curvature is not the only thing that impacts on visual acuity, maybe the position of it matters or how thin it is

What Louise says here makes a lot of sense. Certainly it conforms to my own experience.

Andrew