Keratoconus Awareness Celebration

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History
The World Keratoconus Day came in to play by the National Keratoconus Foundation, a program by Gavin Herbert eye Institute, Irvine. Keratoconus Awareness Day starts from November 10 every month and continues through the month. So what is Keratoconus then? Keratoconus, mostly referred to as KC is a pathological condition of the eye where the cornea shape changes from round and dome-shaped to a thinner bulging shape shape. This Bulging is mostly seen at the center of the cornea. Statistics has shown that out of 2000 individuals in a population 1 person develops keratoconus, if left untreated it may result in considerable vision loss and blindness.

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KC
Keratoconus manifest during puberty and may develop very rapidly such that surgery may be required as soon as possible or slowly, taking a course of about 10 years. Currently no mode of inheritance or transmission is known yet about its development. The stretch sometimes put so much pressure on the cornea such that the membranes rupture and cause oedema, healing may occur afterwards but then there would be subsequent scarring which would leave permanent visual impairment with the patient or individual. It may not necessarily be idiopathic though, KC is also known to be associated with some general conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa, aniridia, blue sclera, contact lens wear just to mention a few.

Management
Astigmatic prescriptions may be used for mild situations or rigid contact lenses however if it progresses on a rapid state or lenses fail to help then surgery would have to be the next and the only option as at now, superficial keratectomy, epikeratoplasty or penetrating keratoplasty.
Visit your Optometrist today if you notice any changes in your vision or cornea shape.

An eye for an eye will make the world blind, let’s all spread the word

What is @bettervision about?

@bettervision is is a project initiated by @nattybongo and friends to give back to the society the knowledge and skill acquired through the Optometric Studies in Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana.It is an outreach system where we visit the less privileged communities to offer free eye screening services and education to the people within the community

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
To reduce or prevent vision loss through diseases such as glaucoma, cataract and refractive errors.

To enlighten the majority of the Ghanaian population about the importance of proper visual care.

To conscientize people on the need for regular eye checks

To get more people to have their wards screened within the Critical periods of a Child’s Vision Development; thus from ages 3 to till about 10 years.

To help the blind and people with low vision live a better life within the society through education of the general public to stop stigmatization.

Our greatest gratitude goes to @fundition @adollaraday @surfyogi @girlsfoundation @bleepcoin @ackza and @wafrica for helping to make the aims and objectives of @bettervision a reality.

This is me @nattybongo reporting for @bettervision. Thanks for your time