Frequently asked
questions

No. Keratoconus distorts the cornea and degrades the quality of vision, sometimes to the point of severe visual impairment, but it destroys neither the retina nor the optic nerve. Vision may become insufficient without correction or appropriate care; it does not, however, lead to the loss of visual perception. This is the most frequent fear, and the most out of proportion with the reality of the disease. The means of correction and, where necessary, the interventions allow functional vision to be preserved in the majority of cases.

Treating keratoconus →

That depends entirely on one thing: is your keratoconus changing? If it is stable and your corrected vision suits you, doing nothing beyond monitoring is a valid medical decision. If it is progressing, doing nothing lets the distortion settle in and narrows the later options.

Progression and monitoring →

A familial component exists in a minority of cases, without transmission being systematic. When keratoconus is diagnosed, screening of first-degree relatives is warranted, particularly in adolescence — the age at which screening genuinely changes something.

Screening and diagnosis →

This is the point over which you have the most influence. Rubbing almost always comes with a cause — allergy, dryness, eyelid inflammation, poorly tolerated lenses — and treating that cause is more effective than willpower alone. Mention it: it is part of the treatment, not a detail.

Keratoconus →

Yes. No general restriction applies. Two reservations: contact sports carry a risk of ocular trauma, to be discussed according to your situation, and wearing lenses imposes limitations for water sports.

Driving requires a minimum visual acuity, assessed with your correction. Many patients with keratoconus meet it without difficulty; others, in more advanced forms, need to adjust their correction to do so. Night-time difficulty — halos, glare — is common and worth reporting, even when the acuity criteria are met. The visual fitness criteria applicable in Belgium are published by the Vias institute.

A few professions impose strict visual requirements, sometimes without correction — the armed forces, police, aviation, the merchant navy. Keratoconus may be an obstacle there, and it is better to know early, before committing to a training path. For the great majority of occupations, no restriction applies.

No. Screen work does not change the course of the disease. It does, however, dry the ocular surface, which heightens discomfort, visual fatigue and the urge to rub the eyes — an indirect effect, but one worth treating.

No link is established between stress and corneal distortion. It may, on the other hand, aggravate an allergy, dryness or rubbing, and it is by that indirect route that it can matter.

Not necessarily at the same time. Keratoconus almost always affects both eyes, but often very asymmetrically: each eye has its own indication and its own timing. It is common to intervene on one eye and simply monitor the other.

Treating keratoconus →

The course tends to slow over the years, but that is a general tendency, not an individual guarantee. Only the comparison of successive examinations allows stability to be concluded in your case.

Progression and monitoring →

Because refractive laser surgery corrects sight by thinning the cornea, and keratoconus is precisely a cornea that is too thin and too fragile: applying it would worsen the distortion. If refractive surgery has been declined for you after a corneal assessment, it means screening did its job. That does not mean no laser has a place. A topography-guided surface treatment can, in selected cases, serve to regularise a distorted cornea. The tool is the same; the intention is entirely different, and it does not seek to free you from glasses.

Keratoconus →

Yes, and it is necessary to know that beforehand. Stabilisation is not achieved in every patient, and an intervention on the shape of the cornea does not give the same result in everyone. This is one of the reasons why monitoring continues after an intervention.

Corneal cross-linking →

Intracorneal segments →

That depends on the item concerned and on your personal situation. A page is devoted to it.

Coverage and reimbursement →