keraflex

[liam82]

My mrs linked me to that a while ago:)

In that article, mr rahman says he hasnt had to do the procedure on anyone twice yet- but wasnt there soneone on this forum saying theyd had it done there and had problems?

Maybe ive got that wrong.

I spoke to mr rahman before i had cxl, and he seemed like a nice chap with a lot of knowledge- but at the time i couldnt afford the money keraflex wouldve costed so went elsewhere to just have cxl.

I wonder if it would be worth getting him on here or something, if hed be willing to talk about his experiences doing the procedure over the last year?

It would be good to have abit more info

[a43]

Hello again, time for an update.

I never bothered with trying out an interim soft lens like I had intended, because as my optician is semi-retired and only works one day/week nowadays, and had to cancel two times in a row, I figured I might as well wait until it's time to fit a proper lens.

I visited him two weeks ago and we decided to try a scleral lens right away rather than try to fit an RGP lens again, as I wanted to see if we could find something more comfortable either way. If I like how the scleral lens fits I'll switch on the other eye as well.

I got the lens yesterday and it is much more comfortable than RGP lenses. Most notably I can move my eye freely without it slipping. I'll probably switch on the other eye too, but we'll see in a week when I meet with him again.

Anyway, on to the interesting part: How is my vision now?

Actually, it's very hard to accurately describe as I experience the impact of the change differently depending on how I look at it (no pun intended). I'll make a breakdown first of single-eye vision and both-eye vision.

SIngle-eye vision:
Pre-treatment, as I have mentioned before, that eye was more or less useless on its own. Doing anything with only that eye, with an RGP lens was a major chore and reading was simply not possible. Without a lens it was pretty much only good enough for finding my way around things. Post-treatment I can read a typical book up to about 15 cm or so. I can watch TV with it and enjoy something that doesn't require you to pay too much attention to detail. I wouldn't like to watch sports or an action movie like that using only this eye. I can use the computer, but not comfortably. Refraction is VERY SIGNIFICANTLY reduced. Where before something would have multiple ghosts images, there is now usually just a little fuzz around the edges or, at greater distance than, say, a meter and a half (if the object is fairly reflective, much further if it's a matte object) only one ghost image extending from the bottom of the object. Looking at things like stand-by lights on electronics, there's still refraction and a corona, but far less than before. Now I see two or three lights as opposed to what was just a big cascade before.

Vision is still not particularly sharp further away than about 20 cm, but it's a myopic blur rather than the astigmatic distortion it used to be. It's made me realize just how bad the myopia in that eye has become over the years - with the bad KC on top I just haven't been able to tell one from the other.


Vision with both eyes:
Here is where it become kind of hard to explain, because the difference is both big and small at the same time. Vision with both eyes is pretty much the same as the vision in the good eye alone, which might sound like there's no net improvement at all. However, before the treatment, the better eye would have to work much harder to achieve that. I find myself squinting and straining a lot less and I don't have to filter away refraction caused by the worse eye. Vision is somewhat sharper, especially at medium range, but focus is much easier overall and that is the most noticeable improvement. Peripheral vision is probably greatly improved but I can't really judge that from memory as I never really thought of it before. I haven't been outside much yet so I can't say too much about photosensitivity.



My conclusions so far:
On the whole, the procedure seems to have been a success so far. There is some disappointment, but it is based in discovering just how bad the underlying myopia is and still not being able to correct that satisfyingly with contacts. I'm very happy with how much the KC-specific symptoms have been reduced. I still don't have very good vision, but I feel I can use my eyes much more comfortably.

I've still only worn the scleral lens for a day, so I have yet to see if the eye has fully accommodated to it, it might improve a little more as the days pass. My optician mentioned that there is still some clouding of the cornea which concerns me a little. When I had a check-up with Professor Behndig four weeks ago, he said the same, but expected it to clear up in about two weeks. I guess it hasn't. It's still just a minor concern to me as whether it persists or not, I'm way better off than before either way.

At this point in time, I'm still undecided on whether to have the other eye done or not. The treated eye is good enough that having to do without the other eye for a couple of months wouldn't be hell, but it's bad enough to make it a very taxing experience. Meanwhile, the untreated eye is still good enough to correct decently by conventional means. I'll probably hold off for a couple of years and see how the treated eye is progressing before I decide on keraflex or any other treatment for the better eye.


I don't think I will have very much to say for a while now. I might post again in a few months and let you know if anything has changed in one way or the other.

[a43]

Just a short update after wearing the scleral lens for a few days:

The improvement has become much more apparent now. My eyes don't feel so tired all the time, I used to always squint at everything but now I hardly ever do (and squinting doesn't do that much anymore as there's a lot less refraction to try to correct). My eyelids used to feel heavy all the time and my eyes were always half closed because the muscles were so tired, but it's not like that anymore. I don't clench my jaw all the time as I used to, which I now understand was probably a symptom of straining to see. I can comfortably keep my monitor at arm's length and I can sit more straight in the chair rather than lean forward towards the monitor all the time.

I said my overall vision with both eyes feels only somewhat improved in terms of sharpness, but there is quite a big difference after all, even if it isn't overwhelming like getting your first pair of glasses can be. Dry weather (and as a result dry eyes) and not being used to the scleral lens probably played some part in the initial impression. Could be that the cornea is still changing. The huge difference however is that I can get that acuity without strain and it's not just the better eye doing all the work. I don't have to look through the refractions to find the "sweet spot". At certain close ranges, vision in the treated eye is actually sharper, although within a narrower focal area, than the untreated, better eye.

The scleral lens is also very comfortable and I'm looking forward to getting one for the other eye as well. They may look a bit intimidating in pictures and when you first hold one because they're so big but I haven't felt this good with a contact lens since I had regular soft ones. They're definitely worth checking out if you're having problems with RGP lenses.

As far as can be said after such a short time, I can definitely feel that my quality of life has improved a lot.


EDIT: Come to think about it, I think vision in the untreated eye has improved a little too as it doesn't have to work as hard.

[liam82]

Thanks for the update, please keep them coming- as they are invaluable for people weighing up whether to have the procedure


Its nice to be able to see what someone elses experience has been

[epik]

Hi all,

I wonder if KERAFLEX can be applied to corneas already stabilized through CXL, in order to reshape them.

If the answer is yes, a second cross-linking treatment should be required for (re)stabilization?

Greetings from Greece,

epik

[dineshk]

hi epik,

my eyes were treated with CXL few yrs back.
recently i got chance to chat with Dr Imran Rehman (manchester - keraflex surgeon) and asked him same question, whether keraflex can be performed after crosslinking.

I would like to share his reply


"Officially Avedro will say yes. However, I take this case by case and see the extent of KC first. I would always recommend that if you are happy with CLs then carry on. INTACS , Keraflex, PRK are treatments used when CL fail in my hands. Happy for you to send me your scans for advise."

[a43]

Short correction: I am trying out semi-scleral lenses, not scleral lenses. They're larger than a normal lens but not quite as large as a scleral lens.

[Luciano]

I did keraflex and crosslingin about 8,9 months ago.
I wouldnt do it again wih 100% sure.
If you are thinking to do, think 10 times, wait for a new tecnology like laser
Internal lenses etc.
But definitly dont do kereflex.
I will write more about the procedure later with more details.
And also i need to say avedro doest want to know about you after the procedure. They know that the procedure didnt work in many cases but they are not worried about it.
I tnink they are trying to hidden the statistics.

[epik]

Hi all,

The penetration of the avedro vedera device in the market is rather (very) slow. In my opinion, this is an indicator of the (limited) efficiency of the keraflex method…

epik

[metallic201001]

hi there,

yes please be very careful about this avedro device. At the moment I think the best options is Athens Protocol
pentacam-guided prk plus crosslinking. Second best: Crosslinking then after 12 months or later topo-limited
pentacam-guided prk.

Maybe the next years developments in infrared based lasik + crosslinking develop. And ofcourse all the developments in lenses.
I think in 30 years when lot of us get cataract they will see so good like never before.

Most important to all: at least stop Progression by Crosslinking, that gives you time.

Andi