Syphilitic uveitis: an Asian perspective.

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Infectious Diseases
• Immunology

Background:

• Syphilis, a sexually transmitted infection, can affect the eye, leading to syphilitic uveitis.
• Understanding the clinical patterns and incidence trends of syphilitic uveitis is crucial for timely diagnosis and management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the clinical features of syphilitic uveitis in a specific patient population.
• To analyze trends in the incidence of ocular syphilis at a tertiary referral center.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective case series of 22 patients diagnosed with syphilitic uveitis.
• Data collected from the Ocular Inflammation and Immunology Services of the Singapore National Eye Centre (1995-2006).
• Review of patient demographics, clinical presentations, and serological test results (positive fluorescent treponemal antibody absorption test).

Main Results:

• The study included 22 patients (mean age 52.7 years) with confirmed syphilis and no HIV co-infection.
• Non-granulomatous anterior uveitis was the most common presentation (62.06%).
• Posterior uveitis, intermediate uveitis, and panuveitis were also observed. Vitritis was the most frequent posterior segment finding (65.4%).
• Most patients (86.4%) had latent syphilis. No significant increase in ocular syphilis cases was noted over the decade.

Conclusions:

• Despite a resurgence of infectious syphilis, a dramatic increase in syphilitic uveitis cases was not observed at this center.
• Syphilitic uveitis commonly manifests as non-granulomatous inflammation.
• Ophthalmologists should consider syphilis serology in patients presenting with uveitis, particularly anterior uveitis.