CERA

Eye conditions

Uveitis

Uveitis is a group of conditions characterised by inflammation within the eye. In Australia, it is most often caused by an autoimmune response, but occasionally it may be the result of an infection.

What is uveitis?

Uveitis includes all types of inflammation inside the eyeball. The term “uveitis” is derived from the uvea, a layer of blood vessels that sits within the eyeball, under the white of the eye. Types of uveitis include iritis, anterior uveitis, pars planitis, intermediate uveitis, posterior uveitis, retinitis, choroiditis and panuveitis.

Uveitis can cause redness, pain, floaters, sensitivity to light and blurred vision. In serious cases, it can damage the eye tissue and lead to irreversible blindness.

Learn about our uveitis research

Our researchers are devoted to investigating new treatments for uveitis, as well as advancing our scientific understanding of its causes and prognosis.

How common is it?

Anyone can get uveitis, but it is a relatively uncommon condition. In Australia, uveitis affects around 20 people per 100,000 each year.

Despite its rarity, uveitis is one of the top five causes of irreversible blindness in Australia, and the third leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Unlike many causes of blindness, uveitis mainly affects children and people of working age.

Causes and risk factors

In Australia, most cases of uveitis are caused by an autoimmune response. This is when the body’s immune system, which usually fights infections, attacks the eye by mistake. Most treatments are targeted at suppressing this immune response, but none are completely effective and without side effects.

In some rare cases, uveitis can occur from certain infections, such as syphilis, which can be cured by treating the underlying infection.

Signs and symptoms

The most common symptom of uveitis is a red and painful eye. Other symptoms may include:

  • blurred vision
  • dark floating spots (‘floaters’)
  • sensitivity to light.

 

Uveitis can affect one eye or both at once. It can come on suddenly or slowly, and last for a few weeks (acute) or for months at a time (chronic). It can sometimes recur many times.

Diagnosis

If you have the symptoms of uveitis, it’s important to see your eye healthcare provider immediately. If you have uveitis and it is left untreated, it can lead to loss of vision and even blindness.

Your eye healthcare provider will do a full eye exam to check for uveitis.

Treatment

There is currently no cure for auto-immune uveitis. However, it’s possible to control it with treatments until it goes into remission.

You can manage uveitis with medications that reduce inflammation or suppress your immune response. These come in the form of eye drops, pills or injections.

Treatment aims to reduce inflammation and pain, prevent eye damage and save sight.

Can it be prevented?

Uveitis cannot be prevented. But you can reduce the chance of relapse and the condition getting worse by not smoking.

CERA researchers have found a possible link between vitamin D deficiency and relapses of uveitis and uveitis activity. While more studies are needed to prove this link, it’s worth getting your vitamin D checked and taking supplements if your levels are low.

Our uveitis research

Our researchers are involved in a range of studies on uveitis. A few key projects include:

  • Testing new treatments for non-infectious uveitis.
  • Determining the best treatment for sight-threatening complications of uveitis, such as cystoid macular oedema (also known as uveitic macular oedema), where swelling occurs at the macula of the eye, which is critical for fine vision like reading or recognising people’s faces.
  • Determining the best way to use currently available treatments for non-infectious uveitis.

 

Uveitis research at CERA is led by Professor Lyndell Lim – a uveitis and medical retina subspecialist and Chief Medical Officer of Cerulea Clinical Trials.

Learn more about our uveitis research