A case of syphilitic uveitis.

A 38-year-old man had anterior uveitis that failed to respond to increasingly aggressive therapy with topical and systemic corticosteroids and mydriatrics. His disease progressed to panuveitis and neuroretinitis and was finally cured with penicillin injections for acquired syphilis. He suffered secondary optic nerve atrophy. Because of the resurgence of the incidence of syphilis in the general population and the dire consequences for the patient in the absence of appropriate therapy, the ophthalmologist needs to consider the possibility of syphilis in his patients with uveitis. He should obtain serologic studies for syphilis.