Which masquerade syndromes mimic uveitis? How can they be distinguished clinically?
Masquerade syndromes present with ocular findings suspicious for an immune-mediated uveitis, but are subsequently found to be related to hereditary, neoplastic, or mechanical mechanisms resulting in ocular irritation/inflammation. The most common is ocular or central nervous system (CNS) B-cell lymphoma . Others include retinitis pigmentosa, leukemia, melanoma, retinoblastoma, retained intraocular foreign body, and malpositioned postoperative intraocular lens. The diagnosis of a masquerade syndrome may be suggested by the appearance of the eye, age of the patient (e.g., malignancy in a patient aged >45 years, retinoblastoma in children), presence of neurologic signs or symptoms, or a lack of response (especially clinical worsening) to standard uveitis therapy.
