Keratoconus is a degenerative cornea disease which causes thinning and bulging of the cornea (called a cone), creating unstable and poor vision and in severe cases leads to a cornea transplant. Keratoconus is estimated to affect one in 2000 people across all races.  Patients report a history of declining vision, visual distortion, glare, light sensitivity, ghosting, cloudy vision, double vision and an inability to obtain adequate vision with glasses. Many times patients also have contact lens intolerance. Keratoconus requires transplantation to prevent blindness in about 20% of patients. Formerly, the standard of care was to proceed with a cornea transplant. However, a safe, reproducible, well-established and FDA-approved new treatment is now available called INTACS®.

INTACS® prescription inserts are two small plastic crescents or arcs. They are composed of the same material that has been safely used for nearly 50 years in the lenses that are used to treat patients with cataracts.  INTACS® are designed to remain permanently in the eye, yet they can also be removed or replaced if desired or needed. INTACS® inserts are surgically placed into the cornea after numbing drops have been applied.  Once in place, the two arcs flatten the cornea so that light rays can properly focus on the retina. INTACS® prescription inserts reshape and add support to the thinning areas of the keratoconic cornea to prevent or decrease the forward bulging of the cornea. The structural support provided by INTACS® inserts will help create a more regular surface of the cornea, which may allow you to be fitted with contact lenses or glasses again to improve your vision.  

 Thousands of keratoconus eyes have been treated successfully with INTACS®. Most patients have experienced improved quality of life, increased best-corrected vision, improved quality of vision and stabilization of the deterioration caused by keratoconus.  Data has been collected on patients having undergone the surgery since 1997. 

SAFETY:
 The safety of INTACS® placement for keratoconus mirrors those in clinical studies for FDA approved treatment for nearsightedness.
If required, INTACS® can be removed with the option of cornea transplantation still preserved.

STABILIZE VISION:
Restores tolerance to contact lenses, and may allow patients to return to the good functional vision they previously had with glasses or contacts.
INTACS® flatten and shift the cone centrally, restructuring the cornea to a more normal shape.
INTACS® support the structural integrity of the cornea without invading the central vision.

DEFER CORNEAL TRANSPLANT:
INTACS® placement provides an option to defer corneal transplantation, generally recognized as the final course of action for the treatment of keratoconus.
INTACS® restores functional vision by allowing most patients to be effectively corrected with contact lenses or glasses, if needed.

You will need a comprehensive eye exam to determine whether INTACS® is a treatment that will be right for you.   

Learn more http://www.INTACSforkeratoconus.com/