[Epidemiology of uveitis in the Tunis area]

To identify the epidemiological characteristics and the most common etiologies of uveitis in the Tunis area.

Medical records for all uveitis patients seen from September 2003 through October 2009 were included.

A total of 424 patients (596 eyes) were included. The mean age at onset of uveitis was 36 years, and the male-to-female ratio was 0.66. Uveitis was unilateral in 56.4%. Anterior uveitis was most common (48%), followed by panuveitis (33.6%), posterior uveitis (13.3%), and intermediate uveitis (5%). The most common causes were Behçet disease (14.7%), toxoplasmosis (10.2%), Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) syndrome (3.7%) and sarcoidosis (3.3%). Retinal vasculitis was found in 20%. Behçet disease was the most common cause of chronic uveitis. The most common complications were cataract (21.6%), ocular hypertension (12%) and macular edema (5.6%).

In our study, the most common causes of uveitis were Behçet disease, toxoplasmosis, VKH syndrome and sarcoidosis.