Treatment for corneal bulging
and weakness
Hans Grossniklaus in RPB research
Recent funding news
The Emory Eye Center has
received the following funding
in the past year:
From the Knights Templar
$20,000 to support the Georgia
2020 Trachoma Initiative to
abolish avoidable blindness
by the year 2020
n
$10,000 for a pediatric
ophthalmology fellowship
at Emory
n
$6,000 for the Learning
Resources Center
n
$3,000 for a visiting professor
in pediatric ophthalmology
n
$3,000 in support of the online
publication Molecular Vision
n
From Research to
Prevent Blindness
$150,000 unrestricted grant to
support departmental research
n
Following a multi-center,
phase 3 clinical trial, the
Emory Eye Center is awaiting
FDA approval for the Avedro
KXL Accelerated Cross-linking
treatment, a procedure to
address corneal problems
such as keratoconus (bulging
or steepening of the cornea
that can lead to scarring)
and corneal ectasia (a similar
condition that can occur after
refractive surgery).
“Cross-linking” works to strengthen the cornea’s collagen fibers to help
the cornea retain its normal shape. In
the cross-linking procedure, riboflavin
is dripped onto the cornea and then
exposed to ultraviolet light. The light
causes the riboflavin to fluoresce,
a process leading to formation of
bonds between collagen molecules.
The KXL procedure can be performed
in just minutes.
“Corneal collagen cross-linking
gives us an opportunity to treat a
condition that previously we could
manage only with visual aids and
hope that it would not progress to
the point that the patient would need
a corneal transplant,” says cornea
specialist Brad Randleman. “Now we
can prevent such disease progression
for the vast majority of patients with
keratoconus, if we can diagnose the
disease and treat them early enough
in their course.
“Cross-linking serves as the cornerstone for other future treatment
options, and we are excited about the
possibility to offer our patients this
expanded spectrum of management
options for keratoconus.”
KXL can alleviate some corneal issues previouslly difficult to treat, such as keratoconus.
The cornea
The cornea is the clear or transparent
cover to the front of the eye, directly
over the iris and pupil. It allows light
to enter the eye, and its curvature
causes light to bend, providing the
eye’s focusing or refractive power.
With keratoconus or corneal ectasia,
a typical patient has moderate to
severe blurred vision from the irregular
curves that develop in the cornea.
Keratoconus and corneal ectasia
together account for 15% of corneal
transplants in the United States.
Past treatments
In the past, managing keratoconus
has included prescription of corrective
lenses (glasses and/or rigid gaspermeable contact lenses). When the
condition progresses, corneal scarring
may occur and a corneal transplant
may be necessary. About half of
keratoconus patients have no past
effects on their lifestyle other than
wearing corrective lenses. The condition may even stabilize. For others,
the condition is treated with a corneal
transplant. In some cases, keratoconus
recurs in the transplanted cornea.
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