Anyone have Keratoconus?

[luv2sparkle]

We found out a couple years ago that my son Cody has this condition. It is a progressive disease of the eye that can very often lead to blindness or the need for a corneal transplant. Recently, we heard of a doctor who has pioneered a treatment for it that can stop the progression and very often reduce or eliminate the need for a later transplant.

I saw Dr. Brian on a tv show in which he completely restored the sight of a young man who had gone blind. We had been told by various doctors that was a remote possibility. In fact, most of the information we had been told about Keratoconus was not completely correct.

This past friday, Cody had surgery on his eyes with Dr. Brian Boxer-Wachlers technique using riboflavin and light. He also had a thin
disc of plastic inserted in his eye (called Intacs) to improve his vision. One day after surgery the sight in his left eye has improved from
20/60 to 20/40 and hopefully will continue to improve.

I wanted to share this with you all in case there was anyone who has been diagnosed with this condition and hasn't heard of Dr. Boxer-Wachler or have any idea that there is a treatment available.

Here is the link:
http://www.boxerwachler.com/

Cody had the Holcomb C3-R in both eyes and Intacs in his left eye. So far so good. You can find all the info about them under procedures.

 

[tyty333]

That is great news...positive thoughts/vibes/dust that his eye-site continues to improve. You must be thrilled!

 

[luv2sparkle]

Thanks Tyty! I am happy about it, and nervous. I am pretty confident it will stop the progression. Cody didn't have a really advanced case.
Also nervous that he does all the things he needs to now. He has drops for a week, and vitamins for about 4 months and he needs to wear
protective eyewear for about a year. He is at school so mama can't really make sure he is doing all the things he needs to. He gets
very busy and sometime forgets things. But they are his eyes and he needs to do it for himself.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

That is so great, luv2s!!! How wonderful that you found this doctor before his vision declined further!

 

[Arkteia]

Great that you have found the doctor and wishing best for your son!

 

[lulu]

What terrific news!

 

[luv2sparkle]

Thanks. This doctor is brilliant, and actually has written the current text books used for Keratoconus and Lasiks.

 

[kelpie]

My husband was diagnosed with this a few years ago but his condition appears stable. He has been waiting on the riboflavin treatment so it is really encouraging to hear your son's story and that the treatment is no longer experimental. I hope his sight continues to improve. How old is he?

 

[luv2sparkle]

Cody is 22. Kelpie, you can get a consult for free (I believe) from Dr. Brian. If your husband has had a mapping of his eye, you can sent it
and Dr. Brian will talk to you by phone. If he hasn't had a mapping done, have him get one. It is a important piece of information for his
treatment and to moniter it in the future. When we were there that day, they had patients from all over the country getting it done.

He is the foremost expert in the world on Keratoconus and a true pioneer. We had two Dr.'s prior that gave us a lot of information that was
not entirely correct. If you go to his website, you can see the books on Lasik's and Keratoconus that are written by him that are the medical school textbooks used now.

Every day Cody is improving. He will have his eyes examined in a few weeks to see if he needs glasses. Dr. Brian also has a specialist in his office in contacts for Keratoconus patients. It is really pricey for that appointment so we are not doing that right away. But they did say that they would consult over the phone with any optomitrist or opthomalogist on fitting for contacts later. The specialist in fit for K patients that they have is only one of a handful in the world. I think that is interesting.