Skip to main content
Erschienen in: Journal of Ophthalmic Inflammation and Infection 1/2021

Open Access 01.12.2021 | Letter to the Editor

Rebound iritis with a well-circumscribed anterior chamber fibrin mass after uncomplicated cataract surgery

verfasst von: Nilesh Raval, Wen-Jeng (Melissa) Yao, Gene Kim, Joann J. Kang

Erschienen in: Journal of Ophthalmic Inflammation and Infection | Ausgabe 1/2021

Hinweise

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Abkürzungen
CE
Cataract extraction
PCIOL
Posterior chamber intraocular lens
OD
Right eye
AC
Anterior chamber
VA
Visual acuity
IOP
Intraocular pressure
rAPD
relative afferent pupillary defect
DF
Descemet’s folds

To the editor

We report a case of subacute rebound iritis characterized by a globular, pedunculated anterior chamber mass that resolved after topical steroid burst.

Case report

A 59-year-old female with no significant past ocular history underwent cataract extraction (CE) with phacoemulsification and posterior chamber intraocular lens (PCIOL) insertion in the right eye (OD). Intraoperatively, a Malyugin ring was deployed due to poor dilation, however the remainder of the surgery was uneventful. On the first postoperative day, 3+ mixed cell and pigment in the anterior chamber (AC) without fibrin reaction was observed, which resolved by the second week with topical steroid administration. The patient was lost to follow up and was non-compliant with her steroid taper.
Eight weeks later, the patient presented with eye pain OD. Visual acuity (VA) was 20/40 and intraocular pressure (IOP) by Goldmann applanation was 6; there was no relative afferent pupillary defect (rAPD) noted. Slit lamp biomicroscopy was remarkable for trace Descemet’s folds (DF), 3+ mixed AC cell and pigment, and a sharply-circumscribed, globular, partially opaque anterior chamber mass with smooth borders and a well-demarcated stalk attached to the surface of the PCIOL (Fig. 1A and B). The PCIOL was well-centered and dilated fundus examination was unremarkable.
The patient was started on prednisolone acetate 1% eye drops every two hours and cyclopentolate 1% eye drops twice a day. Examination three days later showed complete resolution of the mass (Fig. 2A and B) and improvement in AC inflammation to 1+ cell. The patient endorsed improvement in her symptoms and was discharged on a tapering regimen of topical steroids but was again lost to follow-up.

Discussion

The post-operative anterior segment mass reported above most likely represents a fibrinous exudate secondary to rebound iritis. Rebound and persistent iritis are well-known entities that may occur after cataract surgery. Neatrour et al [1] reported that pupil expansion devices significantly increase the risk of persistent (> 1 month) post-operative iritis.
Fibrinous exudates are occasionally encountered after intraocular surgery, more commonly after pars plana vitrectomy [25]. Fibrin reaction has also been reported after anterior segment surgery involving iris manipulation in patients on long-term miotic therapy and in uveitic patients [4]. Following routine cataract surgery, Miyake et al [6] reported a 4.4% overall incidence of pupillary fibrin membrane formation in Japanese patients, typically around post-operative day five.
The pathophysiology of post-operative fibrin clots is thought to be secondary to a transient lowering of IOP and disruption in the blood-aqueous barrier during CE, resulting in leakage of fibrinogen-rich fluid from arterial plasma into the AC, eliciting a fibrinoid reaction [79]. If untreated, this fibrin can consolidate and result in a dense pupillary membrane. The low IOP seen in this patient was likely secondary to ciliary body shutdown in the setting of anterior uveitis.
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report in the ophthalmic literature of a subacute post-operative anterior uveitic mass in such a well-circumscribed configuration that completely resolved after a short course of topical steroids. We surmise that this mass represents a fibrinous exudate in the setting of rebound iritis after cataract surgery involving a pupil expansion device. Ophthalmologists should be aware of this unique presentation after intraocular surgery.

Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge Montefiore ophthalmic technicians Kevin Ellerbe and Diana Iglesias for capturing the slit lamp photos presented in this case study.

Declarations

Not applicable.
Written informed consent for publication of their clinical details and/or clinical images was obtained from the patient. A copy of the consent form is available for review by the Editor of this journal.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Open AccessThis article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://​creativecommons.​org/​licenses/​by/​4.​0/​.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Literatur
1.
Zurück zum Zitat Neatrour K, McAlpine A, Owens TB et al (2019) Evaluation of the etiology of persistent iritis after cataract surgery. J Ophthal Inflamm Infect 9(1):4CrossRef Neatrour K, McAlpine A, Owens TB et al (2019) Evaluation of the etiology of persistent iritis after cataract surgery. J Ophthal Inflamm Infect 9(1):4CrossRef
3.
Zurück zum Zitat Sebestyen JG (1982) Fibrinoid syndrome: a severe complication of vitrectomy surgery in diabetics. Ann Ophthalmol 14(9):853–856PubMed Sebestyen JG (1982) Fibrinoid syndrome: a severe complication of vitrectomy surgery in diabetics. Ann Ophthalmol 14(9):853–856PubMed
Metadaten
Titel
Rebound iritis with a well-circumscribed anterior chamber fibrin mass after uncomplicated cataract surgery
verfasst von
Nilesh Raval
Wen-Jeng (Melissa) Yao
Gene Kim
Joann J. Kang
Publikationsdatum
01.12.2021
Verlag
Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Erschienen in
Journal of Ophthalmic Inflammation and Infection / Ausgabe 1/2021
Elektronische ISSN: 1869-5760
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12348-021-00270-2

Weitere Artikel der Ausgabe 1/2021

Journal of Ophthalmic Inflammation and Infection 1/2021 Zur Ausgabe

Neu im Fachgebiet Augenheilkunde

Metastase in der periokulären Region

Metastasen Leitthema

Orbitale und periokuläre metastatische Tumoren galten früher als sehr selten. Aber mit der ständigen Aktualisierung von Medikamenten und Nachweismethoden für die Krebsbehandlung werden neue Chemotherapien und Strahlenbehandlungen eingesetzt. Die …

Staging und Systemtherapie bei okulären und periokulären Metastasen

Metastasen Leitthema

Metastasen bösartiger Erkrankungen sind die häufigsten Tumoren, die im Auge diagnostiziert werden. Sie treten bei ungefähr 5–10 % der Patienten mit soliden Tumoren im Verlauf der Erkrankung auf. Besonders häufig sind diese beim Mammakarzinom und …

CME: Wundheilung nach Trabekulektomie

Trabekulektomie CME-Artikel

Wird ein Glaukom chirurgisch behandelt, ist die anschließende Wundheilung von entscheidender Bedeutung. In diesem CME-Kurs lernen Sie, welche Pathomechanismen der Vernarbung zugrunde liegen, wie perioperativ therapiert und Operationsversagen frühzeitig erkannt werden kann.

„standard operating procedures“ (SOP) – Vorschlag zum therapeutischen Management bei periokulären sowie intraokulären Metastasen

Metastasen Leitthema

Peri- sowie intraokuläre Metastasen sind insgesamt gesehen selten und meist Zeichen einer fortgeschrittenen primären Tumorerkrankung. Die Therapie ist daher zumeist palliativ und selten kurativ. Zudem ist die Therapiefindung sehr individuell. Die …

Update Augenheilkunde

Bestellen Sie unseren Fach-Newsletter und bleiben Sie gut informiert.