The cornea can become damaged, cloudy and/or distorted due to infection, trauma or certain corneal conditions. This can cause pain, irritation and impaired vision.
The most common corneal diseases can be subdivided into three categories:
- Endothelial diseases | These diseases affect the back of the cornea. These diseases eventually cause swelling and clouding of the cornea, resulting in impaired vision.
- Corneal ectasias | Characterised by an increasingly steep (bulging) and thinner cornea. The cornea becomes cone shaped; this reduces the optical quality of the cornea.
- Corneal surface diseases | A variety of conditions affecting the surface of the cornea, which can result in impaired vision.
