Abstract
Purpose :
To evaluate the incidence of chronic cicatrizing conjunctivitis (CCC) and its associated risk factors in the context of chronic ocular graft-vs-host disease (coGVHD).
Methods :
A retrospective chart review of individuals diagnosed with coGVHD following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) between January 1992 and June 2021 was performed. Data regarding baseline demographic characteristics (age, sex, ethnicity, race) and systemic risk factors (e.g., dyslipidemia, hypertension, diabetes mellitus) were collected. Incidence of cicatricial conjunctivitis was estimated with Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. A Cox regression model was used to assess the contribution of demographic and systemic variables to the development of CCC.
Results :
182 eyes of 173 individuals were included (53.8±14.3 years old; 58.9% male). 43 eyes of 42 individuals presented with features suggestive of CCC 60.4±50.6 months after HSCT, with 5- and 10-year incidences of 9.6% and 23.1%, respectively. Ocular findings that were co-morbid with CCC included contact lens use (n=21, 48.8%) and lid margin abnormalities (n=13, 30.2%). None of the demographic and systemic factors examined significantly associated with CCC development. However, there was a trend for Hispanics to develop CCC less frequently than non-Hispanics (Hazards ratio=0.46, 95% Confidence Interval=0.21-1.01, p=0.06).
Conclusions :
Cicatrizing conjunctivitis is an ocular manifestation of coGVHD that occurs in the minority of the population. More research is needed to understand which GVHD patients are at risk for CCC development.
This abstract was presented at the 2023 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in New Orleans, LA, April 23-27, 2023.