Uveitis – Uveitis is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks the middle layer of tissue in the eye wall called the uvea. Unfortunately, you can get it in all layers of the eye I have it in every area which is called Panuveitis and falls under the umbrella term Uveitis.
Uveitis warning signs often come on suddenly and get worse quickly. They include eye redness, pain and blurred vision. The condition can affect one or both eyes, and it can affect people of all ages, even children.
Related: Pars planitis
What is Uveitis?
Possible causes of uveitis are infection, injury, or an autoimmune or inflammatory disease. Many times a cause can’t be identified.
Uveitis can be serious, leading to permanent vision loss. Early diagnosis and treatment are important to prevent complications and preserve your vision. [1]
Uveitis Diagnosis
To establish a uveitis diagnosis, extensive testing on the immune system with an Ophthalmologist such as: bloodwork, scans, lung tests etc. will be needed.
Uveitis Symptoms
The side affects of this disease are a lot more than just eye pain for many people. Uveitis is a widely misunderstood disease and the side effects are continually present in the community that are always overlooked by standard internet searches. Anywhere from fatigue, inflammatory symptoms in the body with no causes of the symptoms can ever be found let alone a cause of uveitis.
After extensive testing and intrusive testing procedures to find a cause, this is very common to never find a cause.
- Eye redness
- Eye pain
- Light sensitivity
- Blurred Vision
- Dark spots in your field of vision
- Decreased vision
Uveitis Treatment
If uveitis is caused by an underlying condition, treatment may focus on that specific condition. Usually the treatment for uveitis is the same regardless of the associated cause, as long as it is not infectious. The goal of treatment is to reduce the inflammation in your eye, as well as in other parts of the body, if present. In some cases, treatment may be necessary for months to years. Several treatment options are available.
There are a wide range of treatments offered now but almost if not all are immuno-suppressant drugs just like you would see in the treatment of the more commonly known immune diseases and alot of chemo treatments too, eg. Methotrexate, Prednisolone steroids, Humira and countless more. The hosts of problems can range and organ function has to be monitored.
