Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Study: Ocular manifestations of lupus

Ocular manifestations of systemic lupus erythematosus.
Rheumatology (Oxford), Aug 2007, Sivaraj RR, Durrani OM, Denniston AK, Murray PI, Gordon C.

I like seeing this highlighted in the professional literature for rheumatology. Lupus patients with dry eye might not be impressed with the suggestion that their dry eyes can be managed with topical drops, however.

Abstract (highlighting mine)

Ocular manifestations of lupus are fairly common, may be the presenting feature of the disease and can be sight-threatening. Almost any part of the eye and visual pathway can be affected by inflammatory or thrombotic processes. Ocular pain and visual impairment require urgent assessment by an ophthalmologist. Infection should be excluded. Optic neuritis and ischaemic optic neuropathy may be difficult to distinguish. Scleritis and severe retinopathy require systemic immunosuppression but episcleritis, anterior uveitis and dry eyes can usually be managed with local eye drops. Vaso-occlusive disease, particularly in the presence of antiphospholipid antibodies, requires treatment with anticoagulation and proliferative retinopathy is treated with laser therapy. Hydroxychloroquine rarely causes ocular toxicity at doses under 6.5mg/kg/day. When this has occurred, it has been associated with more than 5 years of drug exposure.

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