Abstract
Purpose :
Patients with scleritis may have an associated systemic disease, which is often autoimmune and seldom infectious in origin. The data regarding patient demographics and systemic disease associations for scleritis in the Puerto Rican population is scarce. Herein, we evaluated the demographics, scleritis types, ocular complications, and disease associations in a cohort of patients with scleritis living in Puerto Rico.
Methods :
A retrospective review of medical records from January 1990 to July 2020 of 2 private uveitis practices in Puerto Rico was performed. Charts of patients with a diagnosis of scleritis were selected for analysis. Demographic and clinical data from the review of medical records were entered into a new database, and a descriptive statistical analysis was performed. The University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus Internal Review Board reviewed and approved this protocol.
Results :
A total of 116 eyes of 95 patients with a diagnosis of scleritis were identified. The median age was 54 (range 13-80), 69% were female, and all Hispanics. The disease was unilateral in 77.89% of patients. Diffuse anterior scleritis was present in 73.28%, nodular anterior scleritis in 13.79%, necrotizing scleritis in 6.90%, and posterior scleritis in 6.03% of eyes. Uveitis was present in 16.38%, glaucoma in 13.80%, and keratitis in 6.03% of eyes. The presenting visual acuity was better than 20/50 in 77% of eyes, while 9% had a visual acuity of less than 20/200. An associated autoimmune disease was present in 32.63% of patients (rheumatoid arthritis 15.79%, relapsing polychondritis 4.21%, Sjögren’s syndrome 5.33%, sarcoidosis 3.16%, systemic lupus erythematosus 2.17%, and systemic vasculitis 1.05%). An associated infectious disease was present in 6.32% of patients (4.21% syphilis, 1.05% Herpes zoster, and 1.05% Lyme disease).
Conclusions :
As in other cohorts, scleritis in Puerto Rico was most common in females and had a median age in the sixth decade. The majority of patients presented with unilateral and diffuse anterior scleritis. Rheumatoid arthritis was the most common autoimmune systemic disease association, while syphilis was the most common infectious cause.
This is a 2021 ARVO Annual Meeting abstract.