Ocular manifestations resulting from Rift Valley fever (RVF) virus infection were studied during an extensive RVF epidemic in Egypt during 1977. Colour photography and fluorescein angiography of 7 serologically diagnosed patients showed the commonest manifestations to be macular, paramacular, and/or extramacular retinal lesions, often occurring bilaterally. Haemorrhage and oedema were frequently associated with the lesions, and vasculitis, retinitis, and vascular occlusion were also observed. Patients were monitored during a 6-month convalescence, and, though resorption of the lesions occurred, approximately half the patients experienced permanent loss of visual acuity. Ocular disease was one form of the clinical spectrum of RVF; acute febrile, encephalitic, and fatal haemorrhagic RVF illnesses were also observed during the epidemic.
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