Ultrasound biomicroscopy of ciliary body cysts

To report the incidence and sector distribution of ciliary body cysts in normal subjects and to assess association with age using ultrasound biomicroscopy.

We prospectively examined 232 eyes of 116 normal subjects (51 men and 65 women) ranging in age from 15 to 84 years (mean +/- SD, 45.2 +/- 20.1). Complete ophthalmic examination, including gonioscopy and ophthalmoscopy with mydriasis, was performed. In addition, the circumference of the ciliary body was divided into eight sectors, and scanned in transverse and radial sections by high-resolution ultrasound biomicroscope to determine the incidence, distribution, and location of cysts.

Based on one randomly chosen eye from each subject, cysts were detected in 63 (54.3%) of the 116 subjects. Cysts were found most frequently and in greater numbers in the inferior and temporal sectors. The incidence and the distribution range, expressed as the number of involved sectors per eye, were 73.1% and 3.8, respectively, for subjects 20 approximately 29 years old; both incidence and the number of involved sectors decreased with age (P = .0001). Cyst diameter ranged from 200 to 2500 microm; mean size decreased with age (P = .001). Gender and refractive error did not affect the incidence and distribution. There was significant bilateral correlation in the number, incidence, and distribution of ciliary body cysts.

Ultrasound biomicroscopy disclosed a high incidence of ciliary body cysts in normal subjects, which decreased with age. Cysts were multiple and bilateral in many subjects.