Interferon-gamma assay in tuberculous uveitis
- P Brogden1,
- A Varma2,
- O Backhouse1
- 1Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust, St James’s University Hospital, Leeds, UK
- 2Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, UK
- Paul Brogden, Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust, St James’s University Hospital, Leeds, LS9 7TF, UK; paul{at}paulbrogden.freeserve.co.uk
- Accepted 1 July 2007
Tuberculous uveitis can be an elusive diagnosis and skin testing can yield equivocal results particularly in subjects who have received previous Bacille Calmette Guerin (BCG) vaccination. We present a case where an interferon-gamma release assay helped in diagnosis.
Case report
A 26-year-old Asian man was referred with a 3 month history of loss of vision in the left eye. There was no past ocular or medical history of note and he was otherwise fit and well. On examination the visual acuities were 6/12 in the right eye and counting fingers in the left. There was a mild anterior uveitis and vitritis bilaterally. Fundal examination revealed peri-vascular sheathing with occlusion of retinal veins (fig 1). Flourescein angiography demonstrated periphlebitis, widespread peripheral retinal ischaemia, neovascularisation at the disc and elsewhere with cystoid macular oedema bilaterally. A diagnosis of retinal vasculitis was made …
