This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Go to /pro/cpd-dashboard page

This page is worth 0.05 CPD credits. CPD dashboard

Go to /account/subscription-details page

This page is worth 0.05 CPD credits. Upgrade to Pro

Rubella cataract

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Maternal infection with the rubella virus in the first trimester is still an important cause of congenital cataract.

The infective virus may be cultured from the lens for up to three years and presumably accounts for the progression of the opacity. The cataract if often bilateral but may be unilateral. It may be of the lamellar or of the mature type. In general, infection early in pregnancy is associated with a worse cataract than one late in pregnancy.

Other ocular features include nystagmus, strabismus, micro-ophthalmos, corneal opacities, retinopathy and glaucoma. The pupil is often small and difficult to dilate.


Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.