Posted by: Eye Health Northwest in General Eye Health on September 23, 2024
Staying educated about the health of your eyes can help prevent vision loss from vision conditions and injuries. Knowing when to seek care and what treatments are available can help you stay prepared when conditions develop or injuries occur.
Many conditions and eye injuries can affect the cornea, which is the outermost layer of the eye. The cornea is vital for clear vision, meaning it’s essential to learn about common corneal conditions, their risk factors, and the symptoms associated with them.
Keep reading to learn more about the most common cornea conditions.
What Is the Cornea?
The cornea is the outermost layer of the eye. It protects the eye from germs, particles, dirt, and debris.
Light passes through the cornea and the lens to reach the retina, which transmits information to the brain via your optic nerve. This makes it critical to your vision.
The cornea is susceptible to injury or infection. Medical conditions and genetic disorders can also affect corneal health.
What are the Most Common Corneal Conditions?
There are many conditions and injuries that can affect the cornea, including:
Corneal Abrasion
Corneal abrasions are wounds to the cornea. They can happen due to a scratch from a fingernail or a foreign body getting in your eye.
Corneal abrasions can cause blurred vision, eye pain, and watering. They usually heal with time and the use of artificial tears to ease discomfort.
You may need prescription eye drops if the abrasion becomes infected.
Dry Eye Syndrome
Dry eye syndrome, or dry eye, is chronic dryness of the eye due to insufficient tears or poor quality of tears. Patients with dry eyes can be more vulnerable to corneal abrasions or infections.
Artificial tears or prescription eye drops can reduce symptoms of dry eye. EyeHealth Northwest also offers LipiFlow, a state-of-the-art treatment that can improve meibomian gland dysfunction, the leading cause of dry eye.
Keratitis
Keratitis is an inflammation of the cornea. It can be caused by a bacterial, viral, or fungal infection.
This is sometimes called a corneal ulcer. Eye injuries can also result in keratitis.
Symptoms include pain, redness, watery eyes, light sensitivity, and difficulty opening your eye.
Your eye doctor at EyeHealth Northwest can help determine the cause of your keratitis and recommend appropriate treatment. You may need medicated eye drops to clear up an infection.
Corneal Ectasia
Corneal ectasia refers to a group of conditions that affect the shape of your cornea. This can affect how light is focused on the retina and cause vision problems.
The most common type of cornea ectasia is keratoconus, which causes the cornea to take on a conical shape. It can be treated with corrective lenses or surgery.
EyeHealth Northwest offers Rigid Gas Permeable contact lenses to help correct distorted vision or cornea transplantation in severe cases.
Corneal Dystrophy
Corneal dystrophies are genetic disorders that cause abnormal deposits of proteins, fluid, or other materials on the cornea. Fuchs’ dystrophy is the most common type of corneal dystrophy.
It occurs when the number of cells in the cornea is so low that the remaining cells swell and cause changes to the cornea. Symptoms include glare and light sensitivity, as well as blurry vision in the morning as the condition develops.
Your eye doctor can treat it with prescription eye drops to reduce corneal swelling. If the condition progresses to the point that it is significantly impairing your vision, they may recommend a corneal transplant.
Do you want to stay on top of your eye health, or do you think you may have a corneal condition? Schedule an appointment at EyeHealth Northwest in Portland, OR, today!
