Key points for diagnosis
(1) The affected eye suffers from pain, photophobia, dacryorrhea and visual disturbance.
(2) Ciliary or mixed congestion occurs in the eye, and pathogenic change of different forms starts in the cornea.
1. Type of Superficial Keratitis
a. Dendritic keratitis  At the early stage, many needle-point-like infiltrating opacities on the cornea appear and turn immediately to alveoli. When the alveoli rupture and become confluent with each other, streak ulcer is formed, which takes the typical dendritic appearance in the fluorescing sodium staining. The corneal sensation of the damaged area is reduced.
b. Geographic keratitis   Most of the cases develop from dendritic keratitis. The ulcer goes deeper and spreads more outwards, confluently to form a geographic shape. The corneal stroma beneath the ulcer becomes cloudy, and much rugosty appears on the posterior elastic layer. Complicated iridocyclitis may happen in the course of the pathogenic change.

2. Type of Deep Keratitis  Disciform keratitis  The corneal stroma becomes cloudy with discoid edema edged tidily (sometimes irregular in shape ) . The corneal surface is shaggy and the posterior elastic layer rugose. If the case is severe, the whole stroma of the cornea may be affected, showing the svmptoms of diffuse filtrative opacity, obvious edema of the corneal epithelium and recurrent alveoli, or increasing rugosity of the posterior elastic layer, more deposit on the inner ocular walls, and even hypopyon or secondary glaucoma. In a long time, neonatal vessels extend deeper into the cornea. After recovery, a white patch or leukoplacia may remain in the corniea, which greatly influences the vision.

In TCM, a disease or a symptom might be caused by one pathogenic factor, even two or three pathogenic factors. When diagnosing a disease or a symptom, TCM doctors must follow the principle of "Syndrome Dfferentiation", and then "Suit the Remedy to the Case". In order to gain a more definite and valuable diagnosis, it's important and necessary for the doctor to learn the detailed health information of the patient, including his/her disease duration, age, sex, height, weight, family history, urine, stool, diet, sleep, sweat, energy, mood (emotion), as well as the tongue conditions and the palm conditions, etc. If you would want our expert to create a TCM diagnosis, you're welcome to contact us.