{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,7]],"date-time":"2026-01-07T13:10:44Z","timestamp":1767791444913,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,7]],"date-time":"2026-01-07T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1767744000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Medicina"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background and Objectives: Keratoconus (KC) is a progressive ectatic corneal disease that can cause irregular astigmatism and visual impairment. To describe the demographic and clinical profile of KC patients attending major eye care centers in Riyadh City, Saudi Arabia, and to explore associations with laterality, disease severity, and management patterns. Materials and Methods: This multi-center hospital-based cross-sectional study enrolled consecutive patients with a confirmed diagnosis of KC (new or follow-up) presenting between April 2022 and April 2023. All participants underwent standardized ophthalmic assessment and Scheimpflug tomography (Pentacam). Disease severity was categorized as early, moderate, or advanced using Pentacam-derived keratoconus staging, and ocular parameters (refraction, keratometry, pachymetry, and higher-order aberrations) were compared across severity categories. Results: A total of 157 patients (264 eyes) were included (mean age 31.8 years; 56.7% female), with bilateral KC in 68.2%. Eye rubbing (67.8%) and allergic symptoms (61.7%) were common. Keratometric indices and higher-order aberrations differed significantly by severity grade (p &lt; 0.001). Management patterns differed by sex and laterality, with corneal cross-linking and glasses reported more frequently in males, and soft contact lens use concentrated among bilateral cases. Conclusions: In this hospital-based Riyadh sample, KC was often associated with eye rubbing and allergic symptoms and showed clear stage-dependent worsening of tomographic indices and optical quality. These findings support early detection and targeted counseling on modifiable behaviors, while population-based studies with non-diseased comparators are needed to quantify incidence and prevalence in Riyadh.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/medicina62010122","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,7]],"date-time":"2026-01-07T08:26:56Z","timestamp":1767774416000},"page":"122","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Hospital-Based Clinical Profile and Management Patterns of Keratoconus in Riyadh City, Saudi Arabia: A Multi-Center Cross-Sectional Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"62","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2325-7688","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Khaled","family":"Alzahrani","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Optometry Department, King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital, Jeddah 23311, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ali","family":"Alrashah","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Administration, Najran Health Cluster, Najran 66252, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2637-1996","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Abdullah","family":"Almaznai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Optometry Department, King Saud Medical City, Riyadh 11461, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-8061-5861","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hamad","family":"Alzamil","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Ophthalmology Department, Security Forces Hospital, Riyadh 11481, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Fatimah","family":"Alhamad","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Binrushd Ophthalmic Centre, Riyadh 12311, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Munirah","family":"Alonazi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Royal Commission of Jubail, Jubail Industrial City 35718, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9661-336X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hanan","family":"Alqahtani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Hadeel","family":"Alamer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Optometry Division, King Abdullah Specialized Children\u2019s Hospital, Riyadh 11426, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Nourah","family":"Alfaifi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Administration, Najran Health Cluster, Najran 66252, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Shariefah","family":"ALmalki","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Optometry Department, King Saud Medical City, Riyadh 11461, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Khaled","family":"Alrashah","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Comprehensive Specialized Clinic for Security Forces, Najran 12564, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Jawaher","family":"Alshehri","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Optometry Department, Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, Al-Baha University, Al-Baha 65431, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2015-3544","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Seham","family":"Eldeeb","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,7]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"293","DOI":"10.1016\/0039-6257(84)90094-8","article-title":"Keratoconus and related noninflammatory corneal thinning disorders","volume":"28","author":"Krachmer","year":"1984","journal-title":"Surv. 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