The Interface Between Psychiatry and Ophthalmology

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this article is to review the interface between psychiatry and ophthalmology at several levels, such as the influence of psychopharmacology on eye disorders, the occurrence of psychiatric symptoms in eye diseases, and the neuroophthalmological examination methods supporting the validity of psychiatric diagnoses. Materials and Methods: We searched the PubMed computer database for the key words “Psychiatry” and “Ophthalmology” on the 28th of August, 2018 to obtain relevant articles which were consequently summarized. Results: The results showed that most patients with ocular disease simultaneously have one or more psychiatric symptoms. We also found a prevalence of eye-related side effects in patients who use psychiatric drugs. At the same time, we observed that some ophthalmology methods of diagnostics can be used as diagnostic tools in psychiatry. Conclusions: Most studies showed a significant relation between psychiatry and ophthalmology, such as eye symptoms and diseases following long-term use of psychotropics as well as psychiatric symptoms and syndromes in patients with eye disorders. Our review may be beneficial to psychiatrists, ophthalmologists, and, last but not least, the patients themselves.

Keywords

• depression
• eye disease
• psychopharmacology
• dry eye syndrome
• schizophrenia
• blepharitis