title: Consideration of corneal biomechanics in the diagnosis and management of keratoconus: is it important?
abstract: Keratoconus is a bilateral, non-inflammatory, degenerative corneal disease. The occurrence and development of keratoconus is associated with corneal thinning and conical protrusion, which causes irregular astigmatism. With the disruption of the collagen organization, the cornea loses its shape and function resulting in progressive visual degradation. Currently, corneal topography is the most important tool for the diagnosis of keratoconus, which may lead to false negatives among the patient population in the subclinical phase. However, it is now hypothesised that biomechanical destabilisation of the cornea may take place ahead of the topographic evidence of keratoconus, hence possibly assisting with disease diagnosis and management. This article provides a review of the definition, diagnosis, and management strategies for keratoconus based on corneal biomechanics.
authors.affiliation: The Affiliated Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou City, 325027 China ; The Institution of Ocular Biomechanics, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou City, 325027 China.
authors.forename: FangJun
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bao
authors.affiliation: School of Engineering, University of Liverpool, Liverpool City, L69 3GH UK.
authors.forename: Brendan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Geraghty
authors.affiliation: The Affiliated Eye Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou City, 325027 China ; The Institution of Ocular Biomechanics, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou City, 325027 China.
authors.forename: QinMei
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: School of Engineering, University of Liverpool, Liverpool City, L69 3GH UK ; NIHR Biomedical Research Centre for Ophthalmology, Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, London City, UK.
authors.forename: Ahmed
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Elsheikh
keywords: Corneal biomechanics; Corneal collagen cross-linking; In vivo; Keratoconus