UVEITIS
Uveitis is an inflammation of one of the layers that make up the eye: the uvea.
Uveitis is an inflammation of one of the layers that make up the eye: the uvea. There are several parts of the uvea that can be affected: the iris (the pigmented part of the eye), the ciliary body (located behind the iris, responsible for producing the fluid that maintains eye pressure), and the choroid (the vascular layer located beneath the retina).
Inflammation inside the eye can permanently affect vision if it is not treated properly. It mainly affects young patients, between 20 and 40 years of age. It is a disease that tends to recur, so it should be treated as a chronic condition with periods during which it causes no symptoms. It is essential that the patient maintains good follow-up, both through medical visits and adherence to treatment.
Causes
The study of the causes of uveitis must be thorough and individualized according to clinical manifestations and is highly complex. The main causes are grouped into three categories:
- Infectious: Toxoplasmosis, herpes, tuberculosis…
- Autoimmune, such as sarcoidosis, and those associated with rheumatic diseases like juvenile idiopathic arthritis…
- Neoplastic: Very rare.
Symptoms
The symptoms with which a patient may present include:
- Red eye
- Eye pain
- Loss of vision
- Photophobia (sensitivity to light)
Diagnosis
Diagnosis is made in the ophthalmology clinic using slit-lamp examination, fundus examination, and optical coherence tomography. It is important that patients see an ophthalmologist when symptoms appear, because early diagnosis is essential to start treatment as soon as possible and prevent complications.
In addition to the ophthalmologic evaluation, it is necessary to investigate the causes. This requires blood tests and other studies such as X-rays to rule out infections or associated diseases that may cause uveitis.
Treatment
Treatment depends on the underlying cause. Since most cases of uveitis are autoimmune in origin, medications that modulate the immune response are used, starting with corticosteroids (topical or systemic), nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and immunomodulators. When uveitis is caused by an infection, treatment is directed against the responsible pathogen.
The goal is to completely control inflammation in order to prevent long-term damage to the eye.
Uveitis tends to be recurrent (it can reappear), so it should be considered a chronic condition with symptom-free intervals.