What are the eye-related symptoms of AIDS?
There are a number of eye-related symptoms caused by AIDS: • cotton wool spots — a consequence of bleeding and white spots in the retina, resulting from inflammation of the blood vessels of the retina. Cotton wool spots, named after their appearance, are not dangerous and often disappear in a matter of weeks. • red eye — infections that last for a long time and cause reddening of the eyes. • Kaposi’s sarcoma — a noncancerous tumor that can appear on any part of the body, including the eyes. In the eye, a Kaposi’s sarcoma appears as a purple-red bump on the eyelid or a spot on the sclera, the white of the eye. This growth can be treated with radiation, laser therapy, or the freezing treatment called cryotherapy. • herpes, toxoplasmosis, and zoster — eye infections that are common in AIDS patients • CMV retinitis — an infection caused by the cytomegalovirus. It is the most serious AIDS-related eye disorder. This retinitis can occur in as many as 30 percent of AIDS patients and is mo
