Abstract
Purpose :
To determine the association of potential risk factors with the development of ocular sarcoidosis.
Methods :
This was a retrospective, case-control study, using Montefiore’s Clinical Looking Glass software to identify cases of sarcoidosis and controls seen between April 1, 2013 and March 31, 2015. Inclusion criteria were: a visit related to the clinical diagnosis of ocular sarcoidosis during the study period and residence in Bronx, NY. Two sets of controls were utilized in this study: patients who had a visit related to the clinical diagnosis of systemic sarcoidosis and patients who did not carry a diagnosis of sarcoidosis. The full cohort of cases and sarcoidosis controls were included in the study. Medical health system-based controls were chosen randomly using a 4:1 control: case ratio. Chart review was performed to confirm the diagnoses; characterize ocular sarcoidosis activity; and obtain demographic data (age, gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status) and medical history (HIV, HTN, diabetes type I and II, smoking exposure, atopic disease, and indicated laboratory values). Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated for potential risk factors for the development of ocular disease among sarcoidosis patients and compared to health system-based controls using Firth’s method of logistic regression.
Results :
79 patients with ocular sarcoid (44 with active disease), 778 patients with systemic sarcoidosis, and 316 health system controls were reviewed. There was an increased risk of active ocular sarcoidosis among patients with systemic sarcoidosis < 30 years of age compared to patients > 30 years (OR 4.82, CI 1.44-13.33). When compared with health system controls, ocular sarcoidosis had a significant positive association with presence of HTN (OR 3.98, CI 2.34-6.91) and a significant negative association with “non-Hispanic white” ethnicity and race classification (OR 0.14, CI 0.02-0.54). A significant association was found between active ocular disease and the diagnosis of asthma (OR 2.08, CI 1.03-4.06) and HTN (OR 2.82, CI 1.48-5.60) when compared to health system controls.
Conclusions :
HTN and asthma are associated with ocular sarcoidosis. Younger age is an independent risk factor and there is a negative association for non-Hispanic white race. To our knowledge, this represents the first study to report the strengths of association for these risk factors and ocular sarcoidosis.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2016 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, Wash., May 1-5, 2016.