Visión Digna urges corneal topography for young patients with worsening astigmatism

Visión Digna in Mexico City is warning that worsening astigmatism, blurred vision or frequent prescription changes in young people can signal keratoconus, not routine vision loss. The campaign pushes corneal topography as a fast, noninvasive way to detect the disease early and improve treatment and surgery decisions.

Why it matters: - Keratoconus can be mistaken for ordinary astigmatism, delaying diagnosis in teens and young adults. - Early detection can change the treatment path, protect vision and prevent unsafe decisions before laser vision surgery. - Corneal topography can identify an irregular cornea before vision loss becomes harder to manage.

What happened: - Visión Digna, a private eye-health project in Mexico City, is promoting early keratoconus detection in young people with astigmatism, blurred vision, frequent prescription changes or poor vision despite glasses. - The campaign is led by Dr. José Francisco Valdez López, an ophthalmologist in Mexico City focused on advanced eye diagnosis, corneal topography, refractive surgery, retina, cataract and visual disability prevention. - The message is aimed at patients, parents, students and contact lens users. - Dr. Valdez López said many young patients believe they only need new glasses when their astigmatism worsens, but corneal topography should be used when the prescription changes often or vision does not improve well with lenses.

The details: - Keratoconus thins the cornea and changes it from a regular curve into a cone-like shape. - The condition can cause irregular astigmatism, distorted vision, halos, glare, poor visual quality and difficulty achieving clear vision with conventional lenses. - The disease is often found in adolescents and young adults. - Common warning signs include progressive blur, ghost or double vision, halos around lights, night glare, trouble driving at night, frequent lens changes, rising astigmatism, eye rubbing, eye allergies, poor vision with new glasses and noticeable vision differences between eyes. - Astigmatism that rises quickly, is very high, differs between eyes or does not improve well with lenses may point to an irregular cornea. - Corneal topography maps the shape of the cornea and can reveal irregularities, asymmetry, irregular astigmatism and patterns consistent with keratoconus. - Visión Digna promotes corneal topography for young patients with astigmatism, suspected keratoconus, frequent prescription changes and candidates for LASIK, PRK or SMILE. - Dr. Valdez López said the test is quick and noninvasive and can help determine whether the cornea is regular or needs monitoring or treatment. - The study may also help patients with a family history of keratoconus, rigid contact lens wearers, people with chronic eye allergies and people who rub their eyes repeatedly.

Between the lines: - The campaign also highlights a safety issue in refractive surgery. - Not every young patient with myopia or astigmatism should move straight to laser surgery. - Before LASIK, PRK or SMILE, the cornea must be stable, thick enough and free of ectasia or keratoconus signs. - Laser surgery on an undetected keratoconus patient can threaten corneal stability. - The message to families is that repeated prescription changes are not always a sign of poor compliance; they can reflect an irregular cornea. - Repeated eye rubbing stands out as a concerning behavior in patients already prone to corneal disease.

What's next: - Visión Digna says patients can seek corneal topography even before their astigmatism becomes severe or their vision declines sharply. - The study is presented as useful for people with progressive astigmatism, blurred vision, poor night vision, frequent prescription changes, family history of keratoconus, plans for refractive surgery or long-term contact lens use. - If keratoconus is found, treatment depends on disease stage, age, progression, corneal thickness, visual quality and corneal stability. - Early cases may be managed with glasses or special soft contact lenses. - More irregular cases may need rigid gas-permeable, hybrid or scleral lenses. - When progression is documented, corneal cross-linking may be used to strengthen the cornea with riboflavin and ultraviolet light. - Advanced cases may require intracorneal rings, specialized contact lenses or, in severe cases, corneal transplant. - Visión Digna offers care in Mexico City for patients with astigmatism, suspected keratoconus, blurred vision, frequent prescription changes, irregular corneas, refractive surgery evaluation and diagnostic testing.

The bottom line: - Worsening astigmatism is not always routine refractive error. - Corneal topography can distinguish simple astigmatism from a potentially progressive corneal disease and help patients get the right care earlier.