Cornea and Corneal Diseases

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Cornea is the outermost layer of the eye. It is clear, dome shaped and covers the front of the eye. Corneal disease is a serious condition that leads to clouding, distortion, scarring and eventually blindness. The major Corneal diseases include allergies, conjuctivitis, corneal infections, dry eye, fuch's dystrophy, Corneal Dystrophies, Herpes Zoster, Iridocorneal endothelial syndrome, keratoconus, Lattice Dystrophy, Ocular Herpes, Stevens-Johnson Syndrome. Tests conducted to detect structural and functional abnormalities of the cornea help surgeons in the investigation of the corneal diseases. Some of these abnormalities include alterations in topography, transparency change in endothelial cell morphology and function, loss of epithelial integrity, loss of sensation, opacification, and vascularization. Corneal ulcer is an open sore on the cornea. Causes of this sore range from infection to physical/chemical trauma to over/misuse of contact lenses. Herpes simplex virus (HSV) keratitis is the most frequent cause of corneal blindness in the United States and the most common source of infectious blindness in the Western world. Keratitis Medicamentosa is a condition developed due to the topical application of medications. The corneal epithelium may slough and may lead to corneal scarring and vascularization. Most corneal degenerations are caused due to inherited diseases such as  keratoconus and Fuch's endothelial dystrophy. Recurrent corneal erosion is a condition characterized by the recurrent breakdown of corneal epithelium. This is caused due to the disturbance of the epithelial basement membrane. Corneal transplantation, also known as corneal grafting, is a surgical procedure where a damaged or diseased cornea is replaced by donated corneal tissue. The miscellaneous corneal diseases include Refractive errors, Allergies, Infections and Injuries.