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Ocular manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis and their correlation with anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies
Authors Vignesh APP, Srinivasan R
Received 8 November 2014
Accepted for publication 31 December 2014
Published 25 February 2015 Volume 2015:9 Pages 393—397
DOI https://doi.org/10.2147/OPTH.S77210
Checked for plagiarism Yes
Review by Single anonymous peer review
Peer reviewer comments 4
Editor who approved publication: Dr Scott Fraser
Ammapati Paul Pandian Vignesh, Renuka Srinivasan
Department of Ophthalmology, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Pondicherry, India
Purpose: To study the ocular manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis and to correlate the role of anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody (anti-CCP antibody) with the ocular manifestations.
Methods: Three-hundred and ninety-two eyes of the 196 rheumatoid arthritis patients who attended the ophthalmology outpatient department underwent a detailed ocular examination using slit lamp biomicroscopy and ophthalmoscopy. The tear function of all the patients was assessed using Schirmer’s test, tear film break-up time and ocular surface staining. The anti-CCP antibody titers for all the rheumatoid arthritis patients were estimated using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay tests.
Results: Seventy-seven patients (135 eyes, 39%) out of the 196 patients studied had ocular manifestations typical of rheumatoid arthritis. Dry eye was the most common manifestation (28%, 54 patients). Of the patients, 78% was females (60 patients). The mean duration of rheumatoid arthritis in patients with ocular manifestations was 5.4±2.7 years and without ocular manifestations was 2.1±1.6years. Three percent of the patients had episcleritis (six patients). Scleritis was present in 2% of the patients (four patients). Peripheral ulcerative keratitis and sclerosing keratitis was present in 1% of the population each (two patients each). Eighty-five percent (66 patients) had bilateral manifestations 15% (eleven patients) had unilateral manifestations. There was a strong association between the presence of anti-CCP antibodies and ocular manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis which was shown by the statistically significant P-value of <0.0001.
Conclusion: Ocular manifestations are a significant part of the extra-articular manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis. Dry eye was the most common ocular manifestation. There was a statistically significant association between the presence of anti-CCP antibodies specific to rheumatoid arthritis and the ocular manifestations.
Keywords: rheumatoid arthritis, ocular manifestations, anti-CCP antibodies, dry eye, scleritis, peripheral ulcerative keratitis
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