Visual Acuity in Patients with Non-Infectious Uveitis: Outcome Over Time and Risk Factors

Abstract

 

Purpose:

 

To describe associations between visual acuity (VA) and risk factors for reduced VA among patients with non-infectious uveitis, and to describe their VA trajectory over time while under care.

 

Methods:

 

Retrospective cohort study. VA (as logMAR equivalent) and other characteristics of patients with non-infectious uveitis managed at 5 academic ocular inflammation clinics were abstracted via standardized chart reviews. All visits using the same VA testing method as used at the initial visit (with correction or without correction) were binned into baseline, first 3 months, then 6 month intervals to 3 years, and 1 year intervals to 5 years. Visits within 30 days following surgical procedures were excluded. Linear mixed models evaluated the association of demographic and clinical characteristics with VA, and separately using inverse probability of censoring weights to correct for missing follow-up visits, the mean VA over time within different types of uveitis.

 

Conclusions:

 

On average, eyes with uveitis experienced an improvement (decreased logMAR) in VA acuity over the first 6 months of care; this gain was sustained over five years except in posterior uveitis cases. Particular attention to prevention or reversal of factors associated with lower VA, when feasible, may lead to better visual outcomes. The observation that most types of uveitis tend to improve under tertiary care suggests that change in visual acuity may be a better outcome for clinical studies than the proportion losing visual acuity.

 

Keywords: visual acuity • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: risk factor assessment • uveitis-clinical/animal model