Corneal Complications of Vernal Kerato-Conjunctivitis

Objective: to determine the magnitude and types of corneal complications of vernal kerato- conjunctivitis (vkc) and their effects on vision. study design: descriptive case-series. place and duration: this study was conducted from september 2007 to january 2009 at three institutions in karachi; department of ophthalmology, dow university of health sciences and civil hospital, baqai medical university hospital and sindh government qatar hospital orangi town. methodology: all cases of vernal kerato-conjunctivitis presenting from the different areas of karachi were included in the study. the diagnosis was made mainly on the basis of history and clinical examination. results: total 200 patients were examined. superficial punctate keratitis was the most common corneal complication (46%). visual impairment was more pronounced in case of schield ulcer (16%) and corneal plaques (8%). association with keratoconus (13%) was also noted. cor- neal opacification (13%), and psuedogerontoxon (4%) were also abserved. conclusion: severe corneal complications of vernal kerato-conjunctivitis (vkc) were observed. superficial punctate keratitis was the most common. other complications are potentially serious causing visual impairment.