These symptoms occur because the iris and ciliary body both contain muscles which act to control the pupil size and focusing. Anything causing these muscles to work will cause pain. One, or both eyes can be affected. There are several symptoms of iritis which are fairly specific to it. The ophthalmologist can diagnose iritis because inflammatory cells can actually be seen floating around in the front part of the eye.
Treatment is with ocular steroids, usually in the form of eyedrops.
It is important to shake most steroid eyedrop bottles well, since the medication can often sink to the bottom of the bottle. Thus follow-up visits are important. Iritis can be associated with several medical conditions. Cases of recurrent iritis, especially severe iritis, and iritis involving both eyes may indicate reason to search for an underlying medical condition. Sarcoidosis is a commonly found cause of iritis in adults, especially in African-American women.