Your cornea is an integral part of your eyes. This clear, outer portion is responsible for protecting your eyes, allowing light to enter and providing 65-75% of the eye’s focusing power. If there is any damage to your cornea or if your cornea isn’t the ideal shape, you will experience vision difficulties.
At Schein Ernst Mishra Eye, we have corneal specialists in Hershey, PA, who can assess your eye health, diagnose the underlying cause of your vision problems and provide expert treatment to help you see as clearly as possible.
Corneal Cross-linking in Hershey
Patients who have progressive keratoconus may be good candidates for corneal collagen cross-linking (CXL). Keratoconus is a condition where the corneal tissue becomes thin and weakened, causing it to bulge into a cone shape. The distortion of the cornea will cause a distortion in vision.
CXL treatments can help strengthen the weakened cornea and can reduce the need for a corneal transplant. The CXL process involves the application of a riboflavin solution (a form of vitamin-B2) to the eye, followed by ultraviolet A light exposure. This process increases the amount of collagen cross-links in the cornea. A single treatment may be all that is needed to improve vision.
Corneal Transplants in Hershey
If your cornea is severely damaged, we may recommend a corneal transplant. This process works by removing all or part of the cornea and replacing it with healthy donor tissue from an eye bank.
- Full thickness corneal transplant (penetrating keratoplasty or PK) to replace the entire cornea. Temporary sutures are necessary to keep the new cornea in place as the eye heals.
- Partial thickness corneal transplant (Descement’s Stripping Automated Endothelial Keratoplasty or DSAEK) which replaces the damaged section of the back inner layer of the cornea. No sutures are required and most patients achieve a faster visual recovery.
If you are experiencing any vision concerns, we invite you to schedule an appointment with us to meet our team and learn more about your eye health.
Here are other some situations where we can help:
Issue: Yellowish, Dull-colored, Cloudy Eyesight (Cataracts)
Some people mistakenly think that cataracts affect your cornea. In reality, cataracts are the clouding of the lens inside your eye. This occurs when natural proteins begin to build-up on the lens, making your vision increasingly blurry, dull-colored and yellowed. Cataracts can also cause double vision.
Solution: We offer both traditional and laser-assisted cataract surgery just outside Hershey, in our Harrisburg office, to remove the cloudy lens and replace it with a clear lens. There are many different types of replacement lenses, so we take time to explain each option so you can decide which would be right for your lifestyle, vision goals and budget. Learn more about our lens options by clicking here.
There are many other situations that can affect your cornea. If you are experiencing any type of vision problem or if you need a corneal specialist in Hershey, PA, please contact us to schedule an eye exam.
Issue: Blurry Vision (Refractive Errors)
If you have to wear glasses or contact lenses to see clearly, you may have a refractive error such as nearsightedness, farsightedness or astigmatism. Refractive errors occur when the curve or shape of the cornea is not ideal. For example:
- Myopia (nearsightedness): if your cornea is steep or your eye is long, you’ll have blurry distance vision but clear up-close vision. This is because light entering the eye is focusing in front of the retina.
- Hyperopia (farsightedness): if your cornea is flat or your eye is short, you’ll have blurry up-close vision but clear distance vision. This is because light entering the eye is focusing behind the retina.
- Astigmatism: if your cornea is oval shaped, rather than round, you’ll have blurry vision at all distances. This is because light entering the eye is scattered and focusing in different areas.
Solution: Our team provides a variety of vision correction procedures such as LASIK, Advanced Surface Treatment (AST) and Visian Intraocular Contact Lenses (ICLs). These procedures may help you achieve 20/20 vision so you won’t need glasses or contacts anymore.
Issue: Dry, Watery, Itchy Eyes (Dry Eye)
Persistent dry eye can begin to affect your corneal surface. This can lead to additional discomfort and even start to affect your eyesight – especially if you continually rub your eyes.
Solution: The first step is to determine what is causing your dry eye symptoms so we can recommend a treatment that should relieve your symptoms. Learn more about our various treatments for dry eye in Hershey by clicking here.
Other Services Offered at Our Harrisburg Location
In addition to our Lemoyne, PA, location, we also have an office in Harrisburg, PA, where we perform diagnosis, treatments and surgeries:
- LASIK vision correction
- Cataract surgery
- Glaucoma management
- Macular degeneration treatment
- Diabetic eye care
- Pediatric ophthalmology
- & more
There are many other situations that can affect your cornea. If you are experiencing any type of vision problem or if you need a corneal specialist in Hershey, PA, please contact us to schedule an eye exam.
