Frequently Asked Questions for Patients with Uveitis

  Uveitis refers to inflammation of the iris, ciliary body, and choroid; the iris and ciliary body are supplied with blood from the same large ring of the iris, so they are often inflamed at the same time and are collectively called iridocyclitis. If the choroid is also inflamed at the same time, it is called uveitis. Uveitis is an eye disease that occurs in young adults and has a wide variety of causes, which can lead to blindness if not treated properly. The following is a list of common problems in uveitis.  1. Can uveitis cause blindness?  Uveitis is a common blinding eye disease, but if uveitis is diagnosed early and the inflammation is controlled in time, vision recovery can be similar to that of a normal person. If the uveitis has become chronic and prolonged, with complications such as cataracts, glaucoma and vitreous opacities, surgical intervention can be used to achieve good results.  2. Can uveitis be cured?  A significant portion of uveitis can be cured, for example, some infectious uveitis, such as those caused by bacteria, viruses, parasites, etc., will not recur through surgery and drug intervention; however, uveitis caused by autoimmune factors, such as leukoaraiosis, is difficult to cure.  3.What are the symptoms of uveitis?  Symptoms of uveitis include eye redness, eye pain, and blurred vision. Some patients may also experience photophobia, tearing, and dark shadows in front of their eyes, but these are concomitant symptoms that may not always occur at the same time. The keys to diagnosing uveitis include three things: redness, pain, and blurred vision. If a patient shows any of these symptoms, don’t delay, because early diagnosis is the only way to get a better treatment.  4. What is the diet for patients with uveitis?  Some foods that are good for the eyes, such as wolfberry, cassia seed tea, chrysanthemum tea, etc., are good for patients with uveitis and we can eat them in our daily life. Like chrysanthemum tea can cool and detoxify the eyes, which is good for reducing the recurrence of uveitis. Some patients taking oral glucocorticosteroids or immune preparations for more than a month are advised to drink more milk because glucocorticosteroids can cause calcium loss and osteoporosis; if treated with immune preparations such as cyclophosphamide, it is recommended to always drink plenty of water.  5.How to prevent the recurrence of uveitis?  The following are some of the precautions to prevent recurrence of uveitis: (1) regular rest and rest: ensure adequate sleep; (2) maintain a stable mood: some specific types of uveitis can involve the mental system, and when patients have difficulty controlling their emotions, it can lead to a disruption of the stable endocrine environment; (3) diet: patients are advised not to take overly tonic supplements, such as (3) Diet: Patients are advised not to take overly tonic supplements, such as ginseng, royal jelly and deer antler from Changbai Mountain; (4) Reasonable and regular drug control.  6.How is uveitis treated?  Uveitis should be treated for its cause, because there are a wide variety of causes of uveitis, including infectious, autoimmune and pseudomonal syndromes. Therefore, it is important to find the cause of uveitis after a particularly detailed and comprehensive history, physical examination, routine laboratory tests, and intraocular fluid examination, and then give the corresponding treatment: antibiotics, antifungal, antiviral, or glucocorticoid and immune agents, and in some patients, depending on the presence of complications, laser and surgical treatment. If treatment is directed in the wrong direction, the results can be catastrophic.  7.What are the causes of uveitis?  There are three main causes of uveitis: (1) Infectious: such as viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites, etc. These microorganisms can multiply in the uvea and cause inflammation, called infectious uveitis; (2) Autoimmune: such as autoimmune or rheumatic diseases such as leukoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, etc. These can all cause uveitis; (3) False (3) camouflage syndrome: this category is mainly caused by malignant tumors in the eye, and the clinical manifestations mimic the manifestations of inflammation.  8. What are the complications of uveitis?  There are many complications of uveitis, from the very front of the eye to the very back of the eye, including corneal banding, concurrent cataract, secondary glaucoma, vitreous opacification, retinal detachment, choroidal neovascularization, optic nerve atrophy, etc.