Abstract
PurposeTo study the seasonal variability in the occurrence of acute retinal necrosis (ARN) in a series of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-positive patients.Methods Consecutive patients clinically diagnosed with ARN and a positive PCR result of aqueous humor during a seven-year period were studied retrospectively. Patients' demographics, causative viral agent(s), and the date of disease onset were extracted from medical records.ResultsTwenty eyes of 20 patients were enrolled; the mean age at presentation was 39.6 14.4 (range, 6–62) years. Nine patients were female. The most common causative agent was varicella-zoster virus in 16 patients (80%), followed by herpes simplex virus in two patients (10%). The disease onset was in winter in 10 patients (50%), and the highest incidence was in February (five patients, 25%). The cumulative occurrence of ARN was significantly higher in the first half of the year (winter and spring) compared to the second half of the year (summer and fall) (P = 0.030). In general, seasons with a high incidence of ARN were preceded by cold seasons.Conclusion In our series, we observed seasonal variability in the incidence of ARN, with the highest incidence during winter and spring. However, further epidemiologic studies in different geographical areas are required to elucidate the true seasonal nature of ARN.
Highlights
Acute retinal necrosis (ARN) was first described in 1971 by Urayama et al as a syndrome of acute panuveitis with retinal periarteritis progressing to diffuse necrotizing retinitis and retinal detachment (RD).[1]
We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients diagnosed with ARN at two referral centers in Tehran from January 2011 to December 2017
The seasons with a high incidence of ARN were preceded by cold seasons
Summary
Acute retinal necrosis (ARN) was first described in 1971 by Urayama et al as a syndrome of acute panuveitis with retinal periarteritis progressing to diffuse necrotizing retinitis and retinal detachment (RD).[1]. Antivirals hasten the remission of retinitis in the affected eye and have a protective effect on the fellow eye.[13] early laser retinopexy can reduce the risk of RD,[14, 15] which is a complication that is considered a major cause of poor visual outcome in ARN.[16, 17] early diagnosis and prompt management are important for reducing ocular morbidity, and can potentially save a significant number of eyes from severe vision loss In this retrospective chart review, we observed a clustering tendency in the occurrence of ARN in specific months of the year; this observation could highlight important aspects of the epidemiology of the disease
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