[Ocular manifestations of Ebola virus disease: What we learned from the last epidemic]

The Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak, which was declared as such in West Africa in March 2014, has become the largest EVD epidemic to date. It is the first time that EVD has been responsible for cases imported to the US as well as locally-acquired cases in Europe. Research on pathophysiology and treatment has been considerably accelerated, and more precise descriptions of various forms of ocular involvement have been obtained. Conjunctival hyperemia is often present during the acute phase, and it may contribute to the diagnosis of EVD in an epidemic context. During convalescence, ocular inflammatory manifestations may develop and can be caused by viral persistence in ocular tissue. Eye care providers need to be aware of the ophthalmic manifestations of EVD, sometimes several weeks after the acute infection, in order to recognize them and take appropriate safety precautions.