I witnessed a LASIK procedure performed in China. The operating room was not sterile and there was significant dust and debris. I am certain not all LASIK in China is like this however.

Keratoconus patients are suffering from a disease that weakens the collagen structure within the cornea. This results in vision with decreased clarity. Many patients with keratoconus seek out surgical vision care in order to improve their vision. Some even wonder whether LASIK can correct their vision.

I recently read a story of a Merritt Island doctor who was fined and ordered to perform 50 hours of community service for inappropriately performing Lasik surgery on a patient in 2000. According to board documents, the LASIK surgeon failed to recognize that the patient had a condition — keratoconus — that prohibits Lasik surgery.

LASIK eye surgery thins the cornea. It can also lead to a condition known as ectasia. In this condition, the cornea bulges outward as the pressure within the eye pushes on the thinned cornea. Ectasia can appear remarkably similar to keratoconus and often a patient with ectasia following LASIK surgery will be diagnosed as having keratoconus.

With a keratoconus diagnosis the patient can then sue the LASIK surgeon for malpractice in performing LASIK upon an eye with keratoconus. The question is whether the eye had keratoconus prior to LASIK or if the thinning of the cornea caused ectasia which was then diagnosed as keratoconus. Other factors can also exacerbate the condition. Some medical problems, such as uncontrolled diabetes, thyroid conditions, or collagen vascular diseases, could also weaken the cornea and result in problems following LASIK eye surgery.

Certainly any patient considering LASIK eye surgery must feel comfortable with the experience and qualifications of the surgeon that they are choosing. The higher the prescription the more thinning is required so patients with a high amount of near-sightedness would then be at a higher risk for corneal ectasia. There are in fact other options, besides LASIK, that do not thin the cornea.

While ectasia resembles keratoconus, they are not considered the same disease. Keratoconus occurs in an eye that has not had LASIK treatment. Ectasia is the bulging of the cornea that is resulting from a cornea that is too thin, perhaps caused by LASIK treatment.

Both conditions can often be treated similarly however. Some LASIK patients who are suffering from ectasia can benefit from intacs treatment to strengthen the corneal foundation. Patients undergoing intacs for ectasia are very similar to patients having intacs for keratoconus.

If you are interested in having an eye examination to determine if intacs, LASIK, or other treatment is right for you, please contact Turner Eye Institute. Turner Eye Institute is located in the San Francisco Bay Area and has vision clinics in San Francisco, San Jose, San Leandro, and Concord. Dr. Turner treats patients throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, including Oakland and Walnut Creek as well as Santa Clara, Hayward, Fremont, and other East Bay cities.

This keratoconus blog will help educate people about the effects of keratoconus as well as the experience of patients with keratoconus. This keratoconus blog will be updated weekly so that new information regarding keratoconus and keratoconus treatments can be made available.

Turner Eye Institute would like to offer the best possible information regarding keratoconus. Dr. Turner is a highly trained and experienced corneal specialist with a wide array of experience in dealing with patients with keratoconus. We appreciate the input from patients who visit our keratoconus blog and hope that we can provide helpful information that can assist you in receiving the best possible keratoconus treatment.

Please contact or refractive counselors if you would like to make an appointment to meet with Dr. Turner regarding treatment of keratoconus.

If you are uncertain if you have keratoconus or uncertain about the symptoms of keratoconus please examine are web site and then make an appointment for a keratoconus examination. Dr. Turner would be happy to provide further instructions regarding keratoconus.

Keratoconus Treatments require a trained corneal specialist with a high degree of experience. San Jose patients seeking to consult with a corneal specialist about keratoconus are frequently referred by other eye doctors to Dr. Stephen Turner. Dr. Turner is recognized as a top surgeon in the San Francisco Bay Area and San Jose and is frequently chosen by optometrists as the best selection for patients struggling with corneal problems such as keratoconus.

Dr. Turner has performed well over a hundred procedures on San Jose residents to improve keratoconus, using the intacs frequently to strengthen to cornea and improve stability. The results have been very promising and have given new hope to many San Jose patients with keratoconus who felt that they were doomed to poor vision without any alternatives. Dr. Turner’s experience in performing these treatments are further backed by 30 years of medical and ophthalmology experience, specializing in cornea and eye care.

Dr. Turner received specialty training at some of the most recognized eye surgical centers in the world:

While keratoconus is not extremely common, with millions of San Francisco Bay Area residents and millions of San Jose residents, it can be expected that hundreds if not thousands of people are suffering from the effects of keratoconus. If you live in Northern California, San Jose, or the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Turner Eye Institute. We can provide you with a complete examination to assess the cornea and determine the best treatment for your eyes.

Turner Eye Institute has offices throughout the San Francisco Bay Area that serve residents of San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, San Leandro, Hayward, Concord, Walnut Creek, and other Bay Area cities. If you are a San Jose who has been diagnosed with keratoconus are suspects keratoconus, please contact Turner Eye institute. We can provide you with a comprehensive eye exam to evaluate your condition and recommend the best possible keratoconus treatment.

Keratoconus Treatments in the San Francisco Bay Area are frequently performed by Dr. Stephen Turner. Dr. Turner is recognized as a top surgeon in the San Francisco Bay Area and San Jose and is frequently chosen by optometrists as the best selection for patients struggling with corneal problems such as keratoconus.

Dr. Turner has performed well over a hundred procedures to improve keratoconus, using the intacs frequently to strengthen to cornea and improve stability. The results have been very promising and have given new hope to many keratoconus patients who felt that they were doomed to poor vision without any alternatives. Dr. Turner’s experience in performing these treatments are further backed by 30 years of medical and ophthalmology experience, specializing in cornea and eye care.

While keratoconus is not extremely common, with millions of San Francisco Bay Area resident, it can be expected that hundreds if not thousands of people are suffering from the effects of keratoconus. If you live in Northern California, San Jose, or the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Turner Eye Institute. We can provide you with a complete examination to assess the cornea and determine the best treatment for your eyes.

Turner Eye Institute has offices throughout the San Francisco Bay Area that serve residents of San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, San Leandro, Hayward, Concord, Walnut Creek, and other Bay Area cities.

Dr. Turner has now performed over 200 procedures with Intacs for keratoconus and/or ectasia within the San Francisco Bay Area and San Jose. Over the last 5 years we have devoted a significant amount of time investigating and researching the effectivness of Intacs. A successful Intacs implanted patient, will have a reduction in Rx, an improvement in UCVA and BCVA, an easier to fit soft contact lens with better quality of vision and an arrest in the progression of the cone.

Depending on the case Dr. Turner uses his now significant experience to select one of the following options:

-Select the proper segment thickness, use one or two segments the same size, one or two segments of different sizes (disparate sizes), determine the tension left on the suture or no suture at all, determine if, in the case of just one segment being used, a tunnel should still be created on the unimplanted side.

As you can imagine choosing the proper segment and technique will render a significantly better outcome. We continue to believe that Intacs® are a good and safe alternative to RGP. Worldwide data and our own data indicates that Intacs are a safe procedure to arrest the progression of Keratoconus while improving the quality of vision.

Welcome to our web site dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of keratoconus. The web site will be updated regularly as new treatment options and advanced technologies become available. Many of these updates for keratoconus will be placed within the blogs as well.

Turner Eye Institute is helping to maintain this site and provides excellent care for patients with keratoconus with San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland, the Bay Area, and Northern California.

Contact Turner Eye Institute for an examination to determine the best options for treating keratoconus.