Ultrasonographic findings in endophthalmitis

Ultrasonographic findings are reported in 7 cases of endophthalmitis (6 of bacterial and 1 of fungal origin) resulting from perforating injuries (2 cases), severe corneal ulcers (2 cases) and open-eye surgery (3 cases). The most frequent ultrasonographic picture was characterized by a series of low reflectivity echoes in the vitreous with a high degree of mobility (7/7), fairly large endovitreal vacuoles (3/7) and hyaloid thickening (3/7). In one case the vitreous involvement was confined to only one quadrant. Choroidal thickening both of a homogeneous-diffuse (2/7) and nodular-multifocal type (3/7) was found. Localized choroidal detachment (1/7) and exudative pre-equatorial retinal detachment (1/7) were detected in only two cases. Ultrasonography proved useful both for detecting involvement of the posterior segment and for monitoring the time course of the infection process.