Optical coherence tomography (OCT) findings in a pediatric uveitis cohort

Abstract

Purpose: To describe OCT findings in pediatric uveitis patients and analyze visual acuity changes over time. Methods: A retrospective chart review of pediatric patients (0 to 18 years old) seen at the Emory Eye Center between 2008 and June 2020 with a diagnosis of uveitis and OCT imaging available was conducted. Data collected included demographic data, uveitis etiology, anatomical uveitis location, best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), findings on OCT, and treatment. Results: There were 204 patients and 327 eyes with a diagnosis of pediatric uveitis and at least one OCT on record. The average age was 11.5 years with 57% females (116), 43% Black (87) and 33% Caucasian (68). 137 (67%) patients had bilateral uveitis with the majority, 194 (95%), with a non-infectious etiology. Anatomical location of uveitis was anterior, intermediate, anterior/intermediate, posterior, or panuveitis in 42%, 24%, 9%, 10%, and 15% respectively. At baseline on OCT, there were 222 normal eyes, 19 eyes with an epiretinal membrane (ERM), 53 eyes with macular edema, 14 eyes with both macular edema and ERM, and 19 eyes with subretinal fibrosis. On mixed model analysis controlling for the correlation that exists between eyes of the same subject, the worst initial BCVA was seen in eyes with epiretinal membrane and macular edema, followed by macular edema eyes, subretinal fibrosis, and eyes with an ERM with a logMAR BCVA of 0.95, 0.75, 0.73, and 0.50 respectively (p<0.0001). Notably, with most abnormal OCT findings, BCVA improved over 24 months except for ERM eyes, which showed a logMAR BCVA change of 0.50 to 0.60 (p<0.0001). In a sub-analysis of patients with macular edema with or without subretinal fluid (SRF), there was no difference between baseline clinical characteristics or BCVA in patients who had SRF. Conclusions: OCT imaging in pediatric uveitis is important for diagnosis and monitoring progression of sight- threatening complications. Pediatric uveitis cases show a high proportion of bilateral involvement and prevalence of complications leading to worse BCVA, which demonstrates that prompt treatment and continued monitoring via OCT imaging can prevent ocular sequelae leading to blindness.