Uveitis is inflammation of a part of the eye called the uvea. The uvea (pronounced “You-Vay-Uh”) is a layer of the eye made up of three parts. These are the iris, the ciliary body, and the choroid.
Uveitis can occur in one eye or both eyes. Inflammation of the uvea may involve other parts of the eye, or any part of the eye, including the cornea (the clear, curved front of the eye), the sclera (the white outer part of the eye), the vitreous body, the retina and the optic nerve.
The iris is the colored part of the front of the eye. It controls light that enters the eye by controlling the size of the eye’s opening (the pupil).
The ciliary body is a group of muscles and blood vessels that changes the shape of the lens so the eye can focus. It also makes a fluid called aqueous humor. Aqueous humor is a clear, watery fluid that fills and circulates through parts of the front of the eye.
The choroid is a middle layer of the eye. It holds blood vessels that feed other parts of the eye, especially the retina. The retina is the inner layer of the eye. It contains nerve cells that sense color and light and send image information to the brain.To learn more about parts of the eye and how we see, visit our Uveitis Learning Center glossary.
