Comparison of cell-mediated immune reactions in sympathetic and phacogenic ophthalmia with reactions in uveitis of other origin.

Cell-mediated immunity was studied in three cases of genuine sympathetic ophthalmia, i.e. in cases without lens involvement. In control experiments, lymphocyte transformation tests (uptake of 3H-thymidine) and leukocyte migration inhibition tests (Soborg-Bendixen) gave similar results for six normal persons, six patients with uveitis and two cases of phacogenic ophthalmia. In contrast, two cases of genuine sympathetic ophthamlia, namely those with recent enucleation, showed a significantly increased lymphocyte stimulation index when tested with homologous retina, not with choroid.