[Yersinia uveitis]

Abstract

A 13 year-old boy was admitted with a unilateral acute fibrinous iritis accompanied by a pauciarticular arthritis which had been preceded by a febrile lower urinary tract infection. The diagnosis of a Yersinia enterocolitica infection was established by significant titers of agglutinating antibodies vs. the serotypes O-I (=0:3). The differential diagnosis of the disease included infections with salmonella, shigella, campylobacter, chlamydiae and metastatic bacterial and mycotic infections as well as rheumatic diseases. Repeated observation of Yersinia enterocolitica in our uveitis patients during the last couple of years suggests that Yersinia enterocolitica is another pathogen causing acute uveitis. The clinical significance of Yersinia enterocolitica infections in ophthalmology will have to be clarified by further specific investigations.