True exfoliation of the lens capsule following uveitis.

PURPOSE: To report a rare case of true exfoliation of the lens capsule following panuveitis, with slit-lamp photographs before and following the development of the true exfoliation.

METHODS

Case report. Review of the history and clinical features of a 70-year-old woman who developed true exfoliation during the treatment for panuveitis.

RESULTS

After 7 months of treatment for bilateral panuveitis with topical steroid and tropicamide, the patient developed a thin, transparent membrane arising on the lens surface in the right eye. A diagnosis of true exfoliation of the lens capsule was made.

CONCLUSIONS

True exfoliation of the lens capsule following uveitis may occur due to the weakening of the anterior capsule by metabolic disorder caused by uveitis and precipitated by repeated mydriasis.