Performance of Corneo-Scleral Contact Lenses in Keratoconus: Our Experience in an Eye Care Centre in Rural South India

Aims: To study the visual quality achieved with corneo-scleral contact lenses (CSLs) in keratoconus (KCN) compared to spectacle correction and to analyse their performance across varying severities of KCN. Methods: We retrospectively studied 19 eyes with KCN opting for CSLs. Spectacle-corrected and CSL-corrected visual acuities were recorded and compared. Contact lens fitting was done using the trial lens method. Performance of CSLs with varying severity of KCN was also studied. Results: 19 eyes with KCN, which may or may not have undergone corneal collagen cross-linking (14 had undergone CXL), were included in this study, 16 of which were male and three were female. The mean age was 19.74 years. The difference between log MAR values of spectacle-corrected (0.68, 0.40) and CSL-corrected visual acuities (0.06, 0.09) (mean, SD) was statistically significant. Conclusion: We find in our study that CSLs provide superior visual outcomes when compared to traditional methods of refractive correction in KCN. We recommend it even in advanced KCN patients for the purpose of refractive correction owing to the non-invasiveness and good visual outcomes while avoiding the long follow-ups and recalcitrant complications of surgical intervention.