title: Recurrent keratoconus.
abstract: Keratoconus is a progressive, noninflammatory, nonvascular axial corneal ectasia, with unclear etiology and pathogenesis. It has a prevalence of 50-230 per 100,000 and is a bilateral disorder in up to 90% of cases. The onset of keratoconus is usually at puberty and progresses over 10-20 years producing an irregular myopic astigmatism. The treatment depends on the severity of the irregular astigmatism. Advanced keratoconus, which cannot be treated with contact lenses, requires a surgical procedure--either penetrating keratoplasty, epikeratophakia, or thermokeratoplasty. The results of penetrating keratoplasty are good, with success rates of > 90% of the cases. Recurrence of keratoconus following penetrating keratoplasty has been previously reported, based on a clinical diagnosis, and confirmed by histopathological examination. We report the clinicopathologic features of two further cases of recurrent keratoconus.
authors.affiliation: Eye Pathology Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bechrakis
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Blom
authors.forename: W J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Stark
authors.forename: W R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: Green
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003261:Contact Lenses; D003315:Cornea / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006084:Graft Rejection / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007640:Keratoconus / Q000473:pathology*; D015948:Keratoplasty, Penetrating; D008297:Male; D012008:Recurrence; D012086:Reoperation