CXL and age

[Liam]

Hi All,

I have read various articles on CXL and a number of them recommend that CXL would not be of real benefit to those aged over 40.

The assumption is that after age of 40 the collagen fibres in the cornea will have stiffened naturally with age which is of course what CXL aims to achieve.

However other sites do not mention an age cut-off

Does anyone know about CXL post 40 years of age.

Liam

[Andrew MacLean]

Good question: all I can say is that neither of the ophthalmologists at Saturday's conference mentioned an age cut off, even when one of them was asked by a member who was over 40 about the benefits of CXL for himself.

All the best

Andrew

[Graeme Stevenson]

Whilst there is no specific age cut off it is generally regarded that the progression of KC is slower and less aggressive in the older population. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule and as we said on Saturday at the conference -with KC the rule is that there are no rules!However I would expect the Ophthalmologist to judge each case on its individual merits and if the condition is still progressing Cross Linking could be considered at any age.

[lars]

What did the doctors say about cxl in general? I am not in the UK (for the moment) and it would be really useful to get a resume, if possible.
Thanks.

[Andrew MacLean]

They both thought that CXL was a useful addition to the range of treatments that could be offered to people in the early stages of keratoconus. Neither of them thought it a panacea, and they both responded to questions about circumstances in which it was not appropriate.

The biggest problem seems to be where the cornea has become less than 400 microns thick. Under questioning, one of them did concede that very dry eye was also a condition that would prevent them offering CXL (one member of the forum was refused the treatment because of dry eye).

All the best

Andrew

[lars]

Thanks a lot for your post Andrew!

Lars

[GarethB]

The cornea naturally stiffens with age and one of the concerns consultants have long term is how this may be affected by CXL which is essentially aging the cornea far more thatn it would naturally.