Uveitis: A Clinical Manual for Ocular Inflammation

As a garden is to a gardener, so a book is to its author. Nurtured out of love, both are a source of pride and hope. Microbiology, immunol­ ogy, infectious diseases, rheumatology, and ophthalmology are the seeds of this textbook on uveitis. Over the years, these branches of medicine have been cultivated and garnered to care for patients with inflammatory diseases of the eye, a most hardy species in the family of ocular maladies. The aim of this clinical manual is to give both a serviceable frame­ work and practical information on ocular inflammatory disease. The first section is devoted to general principles and commonly held sup­ positions in the field of uveitis. A system of diagnosis, based on the differential, is also offered. Traumatic uveitis is addressed in the sec­ ond section. The third part examines infectious diseases that have been identified with uveitis. These are frequently curable forms of ocular inflammation caused by replicating foreign antigens. The fourth section of this textbook considers inflammatory diseases of the eye with a presumed autoimmune mechanism. A disobedient, autoreactive immune response is postulated to playa role in these forms of uveitis. Masquerade and idiopathic conditions are dis­ cussed in the final chapters. Etiology, epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical presentation, diagnosis, differential diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis are provided for each disease syndrome. As with most gardens, there are many styles and delightful entrances to the field of uveitis.