[Virologic diagnosis of ocular infections]

Viral infections of the anterior part of the eye are easy to diagnose as a rule: the inoculation of cell cultures with specimens collected on readily accessible and virus-rich lesions facilitates the isolation of adenoviridae, picornaviridae and herpesviridae responsible for these lesions. Viral infections of the posterior part of the eye are a different matter, and they require more complex and also more invasive investigation techniques. Yet an aetiological research is necessary: since effective antiviral agents with a highly specific mode of action are available, the virus to be eradicated must be identified with great accuracy.