November 18, 2021

What is uveitis and which eye structures are affected?

Listen to the Programme on the TSF website
Ophthalmologist: Marta Guedes

It can cause blurred vision and intense pain in the eye - uveitis is an inflammation that should be followed and the ophthalmologist Marta Guedes explains the warning signs:

An uveitis is an inflammation located inside the eye that will affect the iris and the ciliary body, which are structures in the anterior part of the eye, and the choroid which is a structure located under the retina, at the back of the eye.

The patient may experience blurred vision, may see floaters or light flashes, have eye pain that can be exacerbated by light for example, and may have a red eye.

This inflammation will affect only one eye or both eyes simultaneously and, contrary to what happens for example in conjunctivitis, there is no discharge and the pain is usually intense.

These uveitis can be an intraocular manifestation of a systemic autoimmune disease, - for example ankylosing spondylitis, Crohn's disease, sarcoidosis. Or it may be associated with an infectious disease such as syphilis or tuberculosis. As there are so many possible causes related to the appearance of this type of inflammation, it is necessary to carry out an initial investigation and to exclude these causes at the same time as starting the treatment for ocular inflammation.

Therefore, if the patient has already been diagnosed with such a condition or has an autoimmune or infectious disease that may be associated with uveitis, then they should be aware of the alarm symptoms and not hesitate to see their ophthalmologist.

In tomorrow's programme we talk about uveitis in children.

With the support of the Portuguese Society of Ophthalmology.