Life Science Encyclopedia

Iridocyclitis, a type of anterior uveitis, is a condition in which the uvea of the eye suffers inflammation.

Symptoms

Symptoms include:

• photophobia
• redness
• watering of the eyes
• lacrimation
• miosis, constriction of the pupil
• blurred vision
• Synechia

Causes

Iridocyclitis is usually caused by direct exposure of the eyes to chemicals, particularly lacrimators, but can also be caused by ocular viral infection such as herpes zoster (i.e. herpetic iridocyclitis).

Types

There are six classifications of iridocyclitis.

Acute or Chronic

• Acute: sudden symptomatic onset, lasting no more than six weeks.

• Chronic: Persisting for more than six weeks, possibly asymptomatic. Chronic iridocyclitis is usually associated with systemic disorders including ankylosing spondylitis, Behçet's syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, Reiter's syndrome, sarcoidosis, syphilis, tuberculosis, and Lyme disease.

Exogenous or Endogenous

• Exogenous: related to external damage to the uvea or invasion of external microbes.

• Endogenous: related to internal microbes.

Granulomatous or Non-granulomatous

• Granulomatous: accompanied by large keratotic precipitates.

• Non-granulomatous: accompanied by smaller keratotic precipitates.

Treatment

It can be effectively treated with tropane alkaloids or steroids.

To immobilize the iris and decrease pain, one may find tropane alkaloids effective, particularly scopolamine and atropine in .25% and 1% concentrations respectively. Topical steroids may be used to decrease inflammation, particularly prednisolone and dexamethasone.

See also

• iritis
• inflammation
• uvea