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Q: I am a 51-year-old man. I have been suffering from a condition called epi-scleritis for 10 years.
It used to recur once every six months. But for the past two years, it has been recurring almost daily.
The pain would wake me up from my sleep.
It can be controlled only by prednisolone, a steroid, which I have been taking daily for the past two years.
My weight has increased by almost 15kg.
But my condition has not improved.
Can you help me? It is unbearable.
A: Epi-scleritis is a form of inflammation of the superficial lining of the whites of the eye (sclera).
This condition often occurs as a single isolated incidence with an unknown cause.
It is usually amenable to treatment with anti-inflammatory medication.
Occasionally, inflammation of the eye may be associated with medical conditions that are systemic, involving other areas of the body.
Hence, in cases of eye inflammation that are recurrent or severe, the ophthalmologist would usually embark on a series of tests to rule out the possibility of any systemic infections or inflammatory diseases.
In the event that symptoms such as yours continue to deteriorate despite treatment, it is important that you are reviewed by an ophthalmologist to rule out the possibility of other causes of your persistent symptoms.
Only after the cause of inflammation is identified can the appropriate treatment be instituted.
Dr David Chan
Consultant ophthalmologist at Raffles Eye Centre at Raffles Hospital
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