Tag: Keratoconus

Keratoconus: True Testimonials – Meeting Brianna

Keratoconus is a progressive condition in which the sphere shape of the cornea becomes cone shape overtime. The change of shape in the cornea causes your vision to become distorted. Keratoconus didn’t have a lot of treatment options even just a decade ago. But with the increase of technology, several new treatment options for Keratoconus have become available. Two of these Keratoconus treatment options include: Holcomb C3-R ® and Intacs. These treatments offer incredible improvements in vision care for those suffering with Keratoconus.

Intacs provide an improvement to the shape of the cornea instantly changing the way the patient is seeing. But with the combination of the Holcomb C3-R ® procedure the corneal fibers are also strengthened which can slow or in many cases stop the progression of the Keratoconus. These treatments have been performed since 1999 and are providing excellent long-term results.

Meet Brianna:

Brianna was diagnosed with Keratoconus at the age of 10. Over the next 3 years her vision deteriorated causing her to lose her ability to participate in regular activities such as Volleyball, Horseback riding, and cheer-leading, which she loved so much.

She became afraid of losing her vision. She was afraid to ride her bike because she was worried about getting hit by a car. She was confused and didn’t understand why this loss in vision was happening to her. Three years after Brianna was diagnosed with Keratoconus she could only see a few feet in front of her and was quickly losing her ability to function normally. Worried she would become completely blind her grandmother looked into her treatment options for Keratoconus.

Quickly they arranged to have Brianna travel to Boxer Wachler Vision Institute in Beverly Hills, CA. Within two days her vision was restored. Brianna is just one of the many stories for which these procedures have saved vision. These procedures have had a surprising impact on the treatment of Keratoconus.

Intacs & the Holcomb C3-R ® procedures are an impressive treatment for those suffering from Keratoconus.

You can watch Brianna’s story here:

A New Frontier for Keratoconus Treatment

The Holcomb C3-R ® is a procedure that uses a solution made of natural vitamins placed directly on the cornea to improve and strengthen the fibers of the cornea. This treatment helps to stabilize the cornea and slow/halt the progressive nature of this vision deteriorating condition. Full results of the treatment takes between 4 -16 weeks.

In combination with other treatments the Holcomb C3-R ® has the ability to dramatically improve a patient’s vision and improve their lives. In the past, many had to turn to corneal transplants as a treatment for Keratoconus. That procedure was risky, invasive, painful and had a long recovery time.

Now with improvements in technology, treatment options have become non-invasive or at the most minimally invasive. These advanced Keratoconus procedures have shorter than ever recovery time, usually a period of hours or days. Some combinations of treatments can be done the same day with no increases in recovery time.

The Procedure:

During the Holcomb C3-R ® procedure your eyes are numbed with eye drops and a proprietary solution developed by Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler in 2003 is applied to the cornea. Then the patient sits under a carefully calibrated UV light for 30 minutes, this activates the solution. The propriety eye drop solution is made with a natural vitamin called Riboflavin along with other ingredients which encourage the collagen within the cornea to build new crosslinks. These crosslinks is what strengthens the cornea. In some cases, this procedure has the added benefit of providing slight flatting of the cornea shape.

The procedure take about 30 minutes and is performed.

INTACS:

Intacs is often used in combination with the Holcomb C3-R ® to treat all stages of Keratoconus. While the Holcomb C3-R ® slightly changes the shape of the cornea, Intacs are used to help mold the cornea shape more. It uses tiny crescent shape lens inserts to help improve the cornea of the patient. When used in combination with the Holcomb C3-R ® it can improve the patient’s vision.

The Intacs procedure takes around 10 minutes and most patients report that the procedure was easier than a trip to the dentist. Vision of the patient improves almost instantly. Giving them the ability to have a better quality of vision with contacts or glasses.

Symptoms of Keratoconus:

It generally takes a while to be diagnosed with Keratoconus but if you have a family history of this condition or any of the below symptoms you should notify your eye care professional for further testing.

 Frequent changes in prescription
 Frequent eye rubbing
 Double vision
 Eye pain
 Halos or glares around the lights
 Light sensitivity

Dr. Brian discusses the testing used to diagnosed Keratoconus

Finding the Right Keratoconus Treatment

Keratoconus is a progressive condition that causes the patient to lose their vision slowly over time. Keratoconus causes the sphere shaped cornea to turn cone shaped. This causes the images that a patient sees to become distorted and glasses or contacts often will not help improve vision over time.

In the past many patients have had to wait for their vision to be nearly lost and then a cornea transplant was recommended to replace the damaged one. Until 1999, this was the main treatment for Keratoconus, which was invasive and had a long recovery time. Today Keratoconus treatments are available to slow, stop, and in some cases reverse the damage from Keratoconus.

Today’s Modern Keratoconus Treatments:

Over the past two decade many ophthalmologists have worked hard to find new ways to treat Keratoconus. Several treatments have excellent results in treating this condition. A few are listed below.

The Holcomb C3-R ®:

The Holcomb C3-R ® or Corneal Collagen Crosslinking with Riboflavin is a non-invasive treatment designed to strengthen the corneal fibers to help restore the shop of their cornea. Dr. Brian S. Boxer Wachler developed this treatment in 2003 and has revolutionized Keratoconus management.

The Holcomb C3-R ® is performed in the comfort of Dr. Brian’s office and is comfortable to undergo with recovery in as little as a few hours. Additionally the Holcomb C3-R ® can be performed in combination with other advanced treatments to further enhance and improve vision, procedures such as Intacs.

Intacs:

Intacs are tiny crescent shaped lens inserts that are placed in the layers of the cornea lens to reshape the cornea. It provides the patient with almost instant improved quality of vision and when performed with the Holcomb C3-R ® can benefit patients with moderate to severe Keratoconus.

Intacs can be done within 10 minutes and performed the same day as the Holcomb C3-R ® to reduce the need for repeat procedures dates and extended recovery times.

CK- Conductive Keratoplasty:

CK also known as Conductive Keatoplasty can be combined with both Intacs and the Holcomb C3-R ® to help reshape the cornea. Often used to reduce high levels of astigmatism, it can be effective in the treatment of Keratoconus for further enhancement of vision.

CK uses a radiofrequency probe, which gently helps reshape the cornea. This procedure can also be performed in combination with other treatments in the office. CK has little recovery time and little to no pain.

Advancements in Keratoconus treatments give patient’s peace of mind and relief to know there is another option instead of the dreaded and painful cornea transplant.

Watch Kristen discuss her happiness with Holcomb C3-R ®, Intacs, and CK – 3 years after treatment

Tips for Family Vision Care This Year

Vision care should be a priority to your family especially if you have a family history of eye problems or conditions like elevated blood pressure, or Diabetes. Several conditions affect the eyes and can lead to severe vision loss or eye care issues.

Be sure to find an eye care professional that you are comfortable speaking with, and that communicates well with you and your family. This will help your family understand your eye care conditions and find the right treatments for your family.

Below are a couple tips to help you:

Discovering Vision Problems in Your Children:

There are several signs of vision problems in children. Knowing what they are and how to spot them is important. If they are having difficulty seeing it will affect every part of their life including social, and academic as well.

Below are some common signs it is time to see the eye doctor:

 Eye Strain – (in children straining to see the television or board at school)
 Blurred Vision
 Double Vision
 Poor night vision
 Frequent Eye rubbing
 Eye Pain

Family History of Eye Conditions:

If you have a family a family history of eye conditions such as Cataracts, Glaucoma, Keratoconus, or even Diabetes type 1 or 2 you should go to the eye doctor on a regular basis. Annual eye exams are an important part of a healthy lifestyle. Early detection of eye conditions opens up more options when it comes to treatments.

For more information on symptoms of common eye conditions, or treatment option ask your eye care professionals or visit www.BoxerWachler.com

Dr. Brian’s shares his tip on why eye rubbing can be dangerous to your eye health:

Understanding New Advancements for Keratoconus Treatments

Keratoconus treatments have been around for decades and over the years many patients have experienced different treatment options for managing this condition. Keratoconus is a progressive condition that is caused by an abnormal shaped cornea. Over time the vision becomes more distorted and Keratoconus left untreated can result in a severe loss of vision.

Within the last decade there have been several new treatments available for those who suffer from this progressive condition. At one time the primary treatment was a cornea transplant. This type of treatment often had a long and painful recovery time. Now there are many treatment options that involve little to no pain, and have recovery times of days to weeks instead of months.

Advancements in Keratoconus Treatment:

There are several methods of treatment options to improve the quality of life and vision for those with Keratoconus with the advancements in technology. Below you will find various treatment options, and how they help those with Keratoconus. Currently less than 5% of all patients with Keratoconus ever need a corneal transplant.

Contact & Rigid Gas Permeable Lenses

The Use of Contact lenses for Keratoconus Treatment:

If the patient is diagnosed at an early stage contact lenses or glasses can help correct their vision and is often used as a first treatment. However, contacts do not stop the progressive nature of this condition and patient frequent exams multiple times a year to manage changes in prescriptions.

As Keratoconus progresses the contact lens needs to be adjusted to improve the clarity of the condition. The patient then often needs to get special lenses called RGP Lenses or Rigid Gas-Permeable Lens, which can often become uncomfortable to wear for any length of time. Over time patients begin to notice that their vision even with contacts is no longer clear.

The Holcomb C3-R ®:

Other treatments for patients with Keratoconus include the Holcomb C3-R ® (Corneal Collagen Cross linking with Riboflavin). The procedure is revolution, in that it stops the progression of Keratoconus. When patients seek this early, this will often allow patients to maintain good vision and comfort in contact lenses and avoid additional procedures.

This procedure simply uses natural vitamin coupled with Ultra violet light to active the vitamin. Over a period of 4-16 weeks additional fibers are created in the cornea, which stabilizes the cornea and in some cases reverse some damage due to the Keratoconus.

There are many other treatments to improve the clarity or overall vision of patients suffering with Keratoconus. Other procedures include Intacs and CK procedures. When these procedures are combined with Holcomb C3-R® vision is further enhanced and improved.

Looking into these options before making a decision is best. Asking questions of your eye care professional before making a decision is even better.

Dr. Brian Boxer Wachler, MD is a renowned eye surgeon specializing in Keratoconus Treatments, and other procedures.

Watch one man’s journey from vision loss to traveling to the Olympics in Russia after his Keratoconus Treatments

For more information regarding Keratoconus Treatments visit www.KeratoconusInserts.com/fix

Top 3 Reasons to Use Intacs for Keratoconus Treatment

Keratoconus vision correction procedures have advanced over the last decade. There are several procedures that can help improve your overall quality of vision quickly and with little to no pain. Intacs is a procedure that can help you with a condition called Keratoconus and when it is combined with other procedure such as the Holcomb C3-R ® it can improve your quality of vision even more.

Below are the top 3 reasons to use Intacs for Treatment of Keratoconus:

Support in reshaping your cornea

Keratoconus causes the cornea to become misshaped, or distorted. The cornea becomes more cone shaped, which makes vision less clear and contacts more difficult to wear. Intacs are in the layers of the cornea and help to reshape your cornea to improve your overall quality of vision by reducing the irregular cone shape. While this treatment doesn’t cure the condition it can significantly improve quality vision with glasses or contacts by reducing distortions and prescription.

Needs little maintenance

The Intacs needs little maintenance. Once it is placed in the cornea layers the tiny insert is barely felt, and doesn’t need any maintenance from the patient. It can be removed easily if you need a prescription change, or for any other reason.

Can be combined with other treatments

The Intacs can be combined with other Keratoconus treatments to maximize the vision improvement. The Intacs procedure takes merely 7 minutes or less and other procedures can be combined with them, such as the Holcomb C3-R ®.

Watch Ian’s story of night vision improvement with Intacs

Find out today if Intacs is right for you call 310-594-5210 or email info@boxerwachler.com

Improving Vision with the Holcomb C3-R ®

When we are searching to a way to improve our Keratoconus vision we are often mislead. There are several treatments listed online but how do we find one we can trust? Finding the right eye care professional or even the right Keratoconus treatment can be confusing. One of the most important treatments for Keratoconus is the Holcomb C3-R ® (cornea collagen crosslinking).

Why you should chose the Holcomb C3-R ®:

The Holcomb C3-R ® is a great treatment for your Keratoconus. The Holcomb C3-R ® is a non-invasive treatment that will stabilize your vision over the following 4-16 weeks. It additionally can be combined with other procedures, such as Intacs, to improve the quality of your vision. Even better often these Keratoconus treatments can be performed on the same day without even extending recovery time.

Benefits of the Holcomb C3-R ®

Non-invasive office based procedure (no scary surgery room)
Pain-free treatment
Procedure stabilizes vision and stops progression of Keratoconus
Can be performed on individuals as young as 8 years old with no upper age limit
Can be combine with other procedures to improve quality of vision
Takes about 30 minutes per eye
Uses natural vitamins already produced by the body

Combination of Procedures:

Many patients believe that the use of more than one procedure often requires longer healing and additional procedure dates. But with the Holcomb C3-R ® you can have procedures like INTACS, or even CK done the same day. These procedures will give you more improved vision results when preformed with the Holcomb C3-R ® and often times can keep you from having more procedures done at a later and avoid the dreaded painful cornea transplant.

Thousands of patients have improved their vision with the use of the Holcomb C3-R ® treatment since 2003. Many have found that either individually or in combination with other treatments they were seeing results right away, and improved vision when combined with Intacs or CK.

Watch 13 year old Jake’s story and experience with Holcomb C3-R and Intacs

Learn if Holcomb C3-R is right for you, call 310-594-5210 or email info@boxerwachler.com

Did You Know You Can Combine Treatments for Keratoconus Without Increasing Your Recovery Time?

If you hear the word ‘procedures’ you often worry about extended recovery time, more trips to the doctor, and even more pain. With the new treatments available for Keratoconus, you can combine your treatments, have less recovery time, and experience a better quality of vision in the long run.

There are many advances in technology when it comes to corrective eye care. Having more than one procedure done at a time is no longer a burden, but a benefit!

Benefits of combining your treatments for Keratoconus:

Reduced recovery time
Faster improvements in eye treatment
Rapid increase in quality of vision
Less hassle with multiple treatment dates, appointments, procedures
More support for your vision with combined treatments

There are many reasons to have a combination of treatments done for vision correction or conditions such as Keratoconus. With new technologies and treatment options we can now shorten your treatment time, and improve your quality of vision like never before.

There are treatments like Wavefront-guided LASIK, INTACS, and the new Holcomb C3-R ® which has been benefiting thousands of patients across the country. When paired with other treatments, it results in improved quality of vision – improving their daily lives.

Listen to Gail’s experience with Holcomb C3-R, Intacs, and Visian ICL:

Top Alternatives to LASIK & LASIK Repair

Have you thought about the LASIK procedure but are worried about complications? There can be complications from LASIK procedures but not always for the reasons you suspect. In fact, quite a few of the people who get LASIK procedures often aren’t the right candidates to begin with and their eye doctors don’t even realize it.

When it comes to the LASIK procedure there are two main reasons why people have complications. The first is because they have thin corneas. This can be determined during a thorough consultation and should be mandatory testing for all individuals seeking LASIK treatment.

The second reason is that the procedure is not performed correctly. If this happens there are several options to help correct the problems including the use of a procedure called PRK which reshapes the outer cornea. This procedure can often take a bit longer to recover but it can increase your overall quality of vision. Another would be the Holcomb C3-R Crosslinking System, which strengthens the cornea if it has become weakened from LASIK.

Benefits of PRK:

There is no risk of corneal flap complications
Good option for patients with thin cornea
Less depth than typical laser treatment
Reduced risk of compromised corneal thickness (than with LASIK)

What are the signs of LASIK Complications?

For many, the complications from LASIK may not occur for several years after surgery. How do you know when you are having complications from your LASIK procedure? There are several ways to tell however you should report all eye complications to your eye care professional right away. Below you will find a list of some signs of LASIK complications:

Irregular Astigmatism
Keratoconus or Keratectasia
Epithelial in-growth
Decrease vision
Dry eyes & decreased tear production
Blurred vision
Eye irritation

Listen to David’s story featured NBC News about repairs after LASIK and his Keratoconus treatments:

Experiencing Dry Eye Relief with LipiFlow®

Benefits Vs. Risk Factors

For those who suffer from Dry Eye, the notion that there is a treatment that works for them is something they seldom consider.

Often patients with Keratoconus find improved comfort in contact lenses if they had their dry eyes properly assessed and treated.

Most have grown tired of using warm compresses and artificial tears, with no hope in sight. Lipiflow® is bringing new hope to sufferers of Dry Eye everywhere. LipiFlow® Thermal Pulsation System is a new treatment for MGD Dry Eye that is non-invasive and addresses the root of the problem, the glands, by cleaning out the clogged lipids and getting the glands to produce clean lipids on their own.

Below are a few benefits & risk factors for the new Lipiflow® system:

Risk Factors:

There are very few risk factors from the LipiFlow® Thermal Pulsation System at this time. It is true that some people may not be a good candidate for the LipiFlow® System, and as with all procedures there are a few risk factors.

Red eye
Burning sensation
Sensitivity to light

These risks are very minimal and are typically experienced only for a short time after the procedure.

Benefits of LipiFlow Thermal Pulsation System:

Helps Red Eye (related to Dry Eye)
Helps your body create clean and plentiful lipids
Short treatment length
Little to no discomfort
Faster Recovery time

The Lipiflow® Thermal Pulsation System’s benefits far out way its risks. Many Keratoconus patients are experiencing freedom from Dry Eye after years of suffering. Keratoconus and dry eye are treatable, talking to your eye care professional to determine candidacy is best.

Dr. Brian discusses the LipiFlow® treatment and how it is performed: