[Ophthalmological aspects of Reiter's disease]

Clinical picture and course of eye involvement were studied in 254 patients with Reiter's disease. Altogether 130 patients suffered from conjunctivitis of varying severity, 23 from keratitis, 21 from episcleritis, 20 from uveitis, 2 from detachment of the retina, and 5 from secondary glaucoma. Chlamydia were detected in one third of conjunctivitis patients in scrapings off the conjunctiva. The eyes may be accidentally infected by agents from the urogenital organs if the patient does not observe the hygienic rules. Uveitis developed as a rule after a prolonged course of Reiter's disease. They were resistant to antichlamydial therapy because of autoimmune factors that underlay the condition pathogenesis. Deposits of immune complexes on antigens of ocular vascular coating were detected with the use of monospecific antiglobulin sera in 7 of 10 patients with active uveitis symptoms. The risk of Reiter's disease development in HLA B27 carriers is 27.17 times higher than the mean incidence of this disease in the population. HLA A9 and B40 antigen combinations occurred 7 times more often in uveitis patients than in reference subjects, A1 and B27 combinations were 4-5 times more incident.