Clinical Manifestations, Outcomes, and Histopathology of Recurrent Uveitis in Patients Underwent Pupil Coroplasty Combined with Cataract Surgery

Abstract

Purposes: This study was aimed to evaluate the clinical manifestations of recurrent uveitis in patients underwent pupil coroplasty combined with cataract surgery, and discovery the histopathological changes of iris tissues. Methods: There 28 patients with recurrent uveitis-induced cataract, who had underwent pupil coroplasty, phacoemulsification, and intraocular lens implantation were enrolled in this study. The clinical manifestations and outcomes of the enrolled patients were analyzed. The histopathological changes of iris tissues were observed by hematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining. Results: The uveitis were idiopathic in 89.29% cases (n = 25). Before the surgery, 20 cases had no topical medication for at least 3 months. The preoperative BCVA was > 0.5 in all cases. During the follow-up of 5-10 years, no recurrence of uveitis was found in 96.43% cases (n = 27). Uveitis only recurred in one case along with the onset of ankylosing spondylitis at the 6th week after the surgery. HE staining showed obvious atrophy of iris stroma in all samples. The hyperplasia of pigment cells was observed in the pigment epithelium (n = 9) and even invaded into stroma (n = 19). The infiltration of inflammatory cells in iris tissues was found in 7 cases, and neovascularization in the surface of the iris was found in 2 cases. Conclusion: Recurrent uveitis was characterized by the atrophy of iris stroma, and some cases also exhibited hyperplasia of pigment cells and infiltration of inflammatory cells. The surgery proposed in this study can effectively prevent the long-term recurrence of uveitis.