Keratoconus: Epidemiology and clinical characteristics at Ho Chi Minh Eye Hospital

Background: Keratoconus is a non-inflammatory corneal ectasia disease that can lead to visual impairment. Therefore, detecting symptoms of keratoconus is very important. So, we conducted this study to describe the epidemiology and clinical characteristics of keratoconus at Ho Chi Minh City Eye Hospital. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study of keratoconus cases diagnosed at the Optometry department in Ho Chi Minh Eye Hospital. Results: Keratoconus was diagnosed in 124 eyes of 64 patients. The mean age was 20.7 ± 5.2 and the ratio between male and female patients was 1.5 : 1. The majority of patients had the habit of rubbing their eyes (71.9%), 45.3% of patients had allergic conjunctivitis and 9.4% had relatives with keratoconus. Most of the patients had keratoconus in bilateral eyes. Wearing spectacles helps improve visual acuity, and the group without clinical symptoms had better vision. The most common symptom was scissor reflex (67.7%), followed by Fleisher ring (52.4%), Rizzuti sign (49.2%), and Vogt’s striae (21.8%); 21.8% of eyes had no clinical symptoms. Conclusions: The percentage of patients who habitually rubbed their eyes was significantly high. Allergic conjunctivitis was a prevalent comorbidity in patients with keratoconus. Scissor reflex, Fleisher ring, Rizzuti sign, and Vogt’s striae were common signs of keratoconus.