Elsevier

Ophthalmology

Volume 102, Issue 4, April 1995, Pages 687-692
Ophthalmology

Scleritis Associated with Systemic Vasculitic Diseases

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0161-6420(95)30970-0Get rights and content

Purpose: Scleritis may occur associated with systemic vasculitic diseases. The detection of systemic vasculitic diseases in patients with scleritis is a sign of poor general prognosis because it indicates potentially lethal systemic complications. This study was undertaken to analyze the ocular prognosis of patients with scleritis and the different systemic vasculitic diseases.

Methods: Patient characteristics, scleritis type, and ocular complications were evaluated in 82 patients with scleritis with systemic vasculitic diseases; comparisons were made between patients with scleritis with a specific systemic vasculitic diseases and patients with scleritis with the other systemic vasculitic diseases.

Results: Patients with scleritis with Wegener granulomatosis had more necrotizing scleritis (79%, P = 0.0001), decrease in vision (79%, P = 0.014), and peripheral ulcerative keratitis (50%, ~ = 0.0139) than patients with scleritis with the other systemic vasculitic diseases. Patients with scleritis with spondyloarthropathies had less decrease in vision (8%, P = 0.001) and peripheral ulcerative keratitis (0%, P = 0.0256) than patients with scleritis with the other systemic vasculitic diseases. Patients with scleritis and systemic lupus erythematosus had less necrotizing scleritis (0%, P = 0.0412) than patients with scleritis with the other systemic vasculitic diseases.

Conclusions: Ocular prognosis of scleritis with systemic vasculitic diseases varies depending on the specific systemic vasculitic diseases: scleritis in spondyloarthropathies or in systemic lupus erythematosus is usually a benign and self-limiting condition, whereas scleritis in Wegener granulomatosis is a severe disease that can lead to permanent blindness; scleritis in rheumatoid arthritis or relapsing polychondritis is a disease of intermediate severity, which should be monitored closely for the development of ocular complications.

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Supported in part by MEC/Fulbright grant FU 90/37276861, Washington, DC.

b

Dr. Maite Sainz de la Maza currently is affiliated with the Hospital Clinico y Provincial de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.

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