Abstract
Introduction: :
Tuberculosis remains an important cause of infectious uveitis and immune reaction against mycobacteria may contribute to the development of certain forms of autoimmune uveitis. Moreover, many non-infectious uveitis patients are treated with immunomodulatory treatment. The evaluation of tuberculosis immunity is thus an important aspect in the work-up of patients with uveitis.
Purpose: :
In this work, we have analysed the results of tuberculin skin test (TST) and QuantiFERONferon-TB Gold IT (QFT) in a series of patients with intraocular inflammation of indeterminate origin.
Methods: :
In this prospective study, we have performed QFT in patients with non-infectious uveitis. All patients underwent also a standard diagnosis procedure, including TST, and chest Xray. TST was considered positive when the induration was superior to 10 mm.
Results: :
27 patients with all kind of uveitis (anterior, intermediate, posterior and panuveitis) were recruited. QFT was positive in 10 patients and negative in 17. All the patients with a positive QFT had a positive TST. However, among the 17 patients with a negative QFT, only 11 had a negative TST. Six patients had thus a positive TST and a negative QFT. Based on the size of the TST, the anamnesis, and the age of those six patients, it is likely that these discordant results were not only due to BCG vaccination.
Conclusions: :
We found that TST was more frequently positive than the QFT . Our data also suggest that at least for some patients a positive TST and a negative QFT reflect an immune mediated hypersensitivity response against Mycobacterium rather than prior BCG vaccination. Further studies with larger number of patients are needed to confirm the role of those two tests in the work- up of presumed intraocular tuberculosis.
Clinical Trial: :
www.clinicaltrials.gov 546637
Keywords: uveitis-clinical/animal model • inflammation • retinitis