Ocular manifestations of crohn's disease

Ocular involvement in Crohn's disease is rare and polymorphic.

To analyze the frequency and type of ocular manifestations during Crohn's disease as well as the risk factors for ocular involvement during this disease.

This is a prospective study of 52 patients (104 eyes) with Crohn's disease treated at the regional hospital of Nabeul between January 2016 and December 2016. Patients were divided into two groups: a group with ocular manifestations and a group without ocular manifestations. All the patients benefited from a complete ophthalmological examination. Fluorescein angiography and macular OCT were done in cases of posterior segment involvement.

Patients with ocular manifestations were younger than those of group 2 without ocular manifestations with an average age of 34.5 years and 42 years, respectively. The colonic localization of the disease was found in 13 patients of group 1 (52%) and only in 2 patients of group 2 (7.4%). Extradigestive manifestations were noted in 12 patients of group 1 (48%) and 1 patient of group 2 (3.7%). For group 1, 60% of cases (15 patients) were in an active episode of inflammatory bowel disease versus 7.4% (2 patients) in group 2. Anterior uveitis was the most frequent ocular manifestation in our study, found in 29,3% of cases (12 patients).

The ocular manifestations are more frequent in young people, during the inflammatory activity of the disease especially in colonic localization, during the first year of the follow-up of the disease and in the case of coexistence of articular or oral extra-intestinal manifestations.