Correcting Keratoconus With Scleral Contact Lenses

Back in the day, keratoconus patients had limited options to correct their vision. Rigid contact lenses were available, but those lens often were difficult to fit. But times have changed. Scleral contact lenses have entered the picture.

The white part of the eye has two main layers. The layer that we see is the conjunctiva. This is a thin flexible layer. But right underneath that layer is the supporting layer of the eye called the sclera. The sclera forms the shape of the eye to make it look like a globe.

Scleral contact lenses get their name because instead of sitting on the cornea (which is what most contact lenses do) these lenses sit on the sclera and actually vault over the cornea.

By vaulting over the cornea instead of resting on it, the scleral lens is able to create a perfect artificial dome to correct vision. And this is great for keratoconus patients. In keratoconus, the cornea transforms from a normal dome shape to an abnormal cone shape. This cone shape distorts and blurs vision. By turning the cornea back form a cone to a dome, scleral lenses are able to dramatically improve these patients’ vision.

Scleral lenses can’t stop the progression of keratoconus, for that, cornea cross linking is needed. However, scleral lenses have dramatically changed the landscape on how we restore vision for these patients.

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