title: Evaluating exaggerated, prolonged, or delayed postoperative intraocular inflammation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To provide a diagnostic approach for the evaluation of patients with exaggerated, prolonged, or delayed postoperative intraocular inflammation.
  
  
  METHODS
  Perspective.
  
  
  METHODS
  Selected articles on normal and abnormal postoperative intraocular inflammation were reviewed and interpreted in the context of the authors' clinical and research experience.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In addition to infectious endophthalmitis, a number of noninfectious conditions characterized by exaggerated, prolonged, or delayed postoperative inflammation have been described. Heuristically, increased postsurgical inflammation may be categorized by time from surgery to first recognition using the following general guidelines: as immediate and occurring within 2 days after surgery; as early and occurring after 2 days, but within the first 2 weeks, after surgery; and as delayed and occurring more than 2 weeks after surgery.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although infectious endophthalmitis always must be excluded as a cause of increased postoperative intraocular inflammation, potential noninfectious causes also exist. We review both infectious and noninfectious causes of increased postoperative inflammation and provide a diagnostic framework for evaluating such patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, California Pacific Medical Center, San Francisco, CA 94107, USA.
authors.forename: Rishi R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Doshi
authors.forename: J Fernando
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Arevalo
authors.forename: Harry W
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Flynn
authors.forename: Emmett T
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Cunningham
mesh_terms: D000869:Anterior Eye Segment / Q000473:pathology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D009877:Endophthalmitis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology*; D015818:Eye Infections, Bacterial / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D013508:Ophthalmologic Surgical Procedures; D011183:Postoperative Complications