"Contact lens" cornea in rheumatoid arthritis.

It has been noted that patients suffering from long-standing rheumatoid arthritis often display a characteristic corneal lesion. This consists of a partial opacity of the periphery of the cornea involving part or all of its circumference. The cornea in this area is thinned, usually by about a third of its normal thickness and has a well-demarcated central edge. It is minimally vascularized by superficial vessels crossing the limbus. The appearance is quite striking even upon superficial examination and resembles that of an eye wearing a microcorneal contact lens, so much so that it could well be called "contact lens" cornea (Fig. i).