Learn more about Keratoconus - Day 1

Our Keratoconus Symposium was a huge success with over 2,600 eye care professionals registered, making it the highest amount of registrations ever for a Woo U event! Massive thanks to IKA and NKCF for co-hosting such an amazing event.

Here are some key takeaways from Day 1:

• Dr. Mitch Ibach educated us on the importance of early diagnosis and detection of keratoconus.

• It is important to detect and refer early so patients can get treatment and prevent major vision issues later in life

• Some red flags that all eye care professionals can look for (even with fancy equipment):

• High amounts of cylinder during the refraction

• Oblique cylinder axes

• Vision not able to get to 20/20 in an otherwise healthy eye

• Scissoring reflex on retinoscopy

• Dr. Kent Wellish educated us on the need for corneal crosslinking in keratoconus patients.

• Because crosslinking is a corneal procedure, it is likely to cause some ocular surface irritation.

• Preparing the corneal surface prior to the crosslinking procedure can dramatically improve the amount of dryness and issues with the corneal post procedure

• Dry eye is a complication of corneal crosslinking, and it is important to manage this prior to any surgery

• Dr. John Gelles educated us on what corneal crosslinking is and why it is important for keratoconus patients

• There is currently one FDA approved procedure (epi-off), but there is an epi-on procedure undergoing FDA approval.

• Dr. Elise Kramer gave us a lot of different materials for keratoconus patient education.

• One of the best resources for keratoconus patients is the National Keratoconus Foundation. They provide accurate information to newly diagnosed KC patients

All of these presentations are available at WooU.org, under the title “Keratoconus Symposium”. Be sure to check them out to learn the most up to date research and clinical pearls from all of the leaders in the field of keratoconus!