2020–2021 BCSC Basic and Clinical Science Course™
9 Uveitis and Ocular Inflammation
Chapter 13: Masquerade Syndromes
Nonneoplastic Masquerade Syndromes
Intraocular Foreign Bodies
Retained intraocular foreign bodies may produce chronic intraocular inflammation as the result of mechanical, chemical, toxic, or inflammatory irritation of uveal tissues (particularly the ciliary body). A high index of suspicion and the following are essential: a careful history; clinical examination; and ancillary testing, including gonioscopy, ultrasonography, and CT of the eye and orbits. If this condition is suspected and recognized quickly, identification and removal of the foreign body are often curative. If the diagnosis is delayed, ocular complications, such as proliferative vitreoretinopathy and endophthalmitis, result in a poorer visual prognosis.
Excerpted from BCSC 2020-2021 series: Section 9 - Uveitis and Ocular Inflammation. For more information and to purchase the entire series, please visit https://www.aao.org/bcsc.