Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 18, 2026
A Clinical Trial Assessing the Safety, Efficacy, and Delivery of Olive-Oil-Based Three-Chamber Bags for Parenteral Nutrition
Published on: September 20, 2019
Quality-of-Life Outcomes From a Randomized Clinical Trial Comparing Antimetabolites for Intermediate, Posterior, and
Katherine M Niemeyer1, John A Gonzales2, Sivakumar R Rathinam3
1F. I. Proctor Foundation, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California.
Purpose:
To evaluate the changes in quality of life in noninfectious uveitis patients treated with 2 of the most commonly prescribed antimetabolite treatments.
Design:
Secondary analysis of a multicenter, block-randomized clinical trial.
Methods:
Eighty patients at Aravind Eye Hospitals in Madurai and Coimbatore, India, with noninfectious intermediate, posterior, or panuveitis were randomized to receive oral methotrexate, 25 mg weekly, or oral mycophenolate mofetil, 1 g twice daily, and were followed up monthly for 6 months. Best-corrected visual acuity, Indian Vision Function Questionnaire (IND-VFQ), and Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Short Form Survey (SF-36) were obtained at enrollment and at 6 months (or prior, in the event of early treatment failure).
Results:
IND-VFQ scores, on average, increased by 9.2 points from trial enrollment to 6 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.9, 13.5, P = .0001). Although the SF-36 physical component summary score did not significantly differ over the course of the trial, the mental component summary score decreased by 2.3 points (95% CI: -4.4, -0.1, P = .04) and the vitality subscale decreased by 3.5 points (95% CI: -5.6, -1.4, P = .001). Quality-of-life scores did not differ between treatment arms. Linear regression modeling showed a 3.2-point improvement in IND-VFQ score for every 5-letter improvement in visual acuity (95% CI: 1.9, 4.3; P < .001).
Conclusions:
Although uveitis treatment was associated with increased vision and vision-related quality of life, patient-reported physical health did not change after 6 months of treatment, and mental health decreased. Despite improved visual outcomes, uveitis patients receiving systemic immunosuppressive therapy may experience a deterioration in mental health-related quality of life.