Ultrasound biomicroscopy of ciliary body cysts

PURPOSE: To report the incidence and sector distribution of ciliary body cy sts in normal subjects and to assess association with age using ultrasound biomicroscopy. METHODS: 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 ophthalmoscop y with mydriasis, was performed. In addition, the circumference of the cili ary body was divided into eight sectors, and scanned in transverse and radi al sections by high-resolution ultrasound biomicroscope to determine the in cidence, distribution, and location of cysts. RESULTS: Based on one randomly chosen eye from each subject, cysts were det ected in 63 (54.3%) of the 116 subjects. Cysts were found most frequently a nd in greater numbers in the inferior and temporal sectors. The incidence a nd the distribution range, expressed as the number of involved sectors per eye, were 73.1% and 3.8, respectively, for subjects 20 similar to 29 years old; both incidence and the number of involved sectors decreased with age ( P = .0001). Cyst diameter ranged from 200 to 2500 pm; mean size decreased w ith age (P = .001). Gender and refractive error did not affect the incidenc e and distribution. There was significant bilateral correlation in the numb er, incidence, and distribution of ciliary body cysts. CONCLUSION: Ultrasound biomicroscopy disclosed a high incidence of ciliary body cysts in normal subjects, which decreased with age. Cysts were multipl e and bilateral in many subjects. (C) 1999 by Elsevier Science Inc. All rig hts reserved.