Eversight Illinois Vision Spring 2017 SpringVision_IL_19Apr17_FNL | Page 7

Evelin’s struggle with corneal blindness began 10 years earlier. At just 20 years old, Evelin endured progressive vision loss and a series of misdiagnoses before finally receiving an explanation for her problems: keratoconus. “I didn’t know if I would go completely blind,” Evelin said. “I asked my doctor if I would ever get to see the simple things like colorful flowers or my family’s faces. I didn’t know if my eye disease would end my dreams.” Fortunately, Evelin regained hope when she learned a cornea transplant could restore her sight. Now, eight years after her surgery, Evelin has a successful career in the medical field and can enjoy all of life’s finest details—like her 5-year-old son’s smile. Living with keratoconus Special thanks to Parag A. Majmudar, M.D., President and Chief Medical Officer of Chicago Cornea Consultants, Ltd., for providing information about keratoconus and the innovative corneal cross-linking treatment. Dr. Majmudar Every year thousands of people are diagnosed with an eye condition called keratoconus. The disorder is a common cause of corneal blindness in which the cornea progressively thins and steepens into a cone shape. The cornea acts as a window and allows light to pass through to the retina to project a clear image to the brain. In keratoconus, however, the abnormal shape of the cornea results in a distorted image. Symptoms & treatments As the condition worsens, patients often experience a variety of symptoms which interfere with their visual acuity and ability to complete daily tasks, jobs or other responsibilities. Common symptoms may include: Donor mother September Vaudrey displays a painting by her daughter, Katie. Evelin’s gratitude motivated her to do more than just write to September. It inspired her to set up a meeting. So, during the first week of November, Evelin and September finally had the chance to embrace and share their interconnected stories at Eversight Illinois in Chicago. As September hugged Evelin for the first time, she said, “Thank you so much for being willing to meet me. It means so much.” Evelin simply replied, “No, thank Katie.” Eversight Illinois helps facilitate correspondance between recipients and donor families. If you are interested in writing to a donor family or recipient, contact Brittany Wright, Community Relations Liaison, at [email protected]. • Increased light sensitivity • Difficulty driving at night • Eye strain, headaches • Seeing halos around lights and eye pain Transplants have provided the gift of sight to countless patients with keratoconus, but new innovations offer a variety of other options. One of these therapies, which has become a first-line treatment for keratoconus all over the world, is called corneal cross-linking (CXL). CXL employs ultraviolet light and a photosensitizer to increase corneal strength and halt the advancement of the bulging caused by keratoconus. This therapy was previously only recommended for progressive cases, but CXL is now being used to preserve corneal shape and function for both young patients and those whose conditions could possibly worsen. Similar to cornea transplants, CXL is an outpatient procedure and takes about 60–90 minutes. Patients typically recover their baseline visual acuity within 48–72 hours. The future of CXL As CXL continues growing in popularity, surgeons anticipate the procedure will be offered to every child and adult at the first onset of keratoconus. With increased education about CXL it might even be possible to change the keratoconus paradigm from a reactive treatment (i.e. performing a transplant) to a proactive one. Spring 2017 | V I S I O N | Page 7