Two patients with long-standing discoid lupus erythematosus developed acute, unilateral, corneal stromal infiltration and edema. No evidence of infection was found, and both responded rapidly to topical corticosteroid therapy. To our knowledge, only one case of stromal keratitis associated with discoid lupus erythematosus has been published previously. We describe the first cases, to our knowledge, in which a satisfactory response to corticosteroid therapy is demonstrated.