Scleritis in Iran

To present the demographic and clinical presentations of anterior scleritis among Iranian patients.

This retrospective case-series at a tertiary center in Iran, identified and analyzed anterior scleritis cases admitted from 2008 to 2018. Extracted data included demographics, clinical features, background systemic diseases, utilized therapies, and follow-up data on visual outcomes, ocular complications, and recurrence rate. Patients with incomplete records were excluded from the analysis.

Sixty-five patients (83 eyes) with anterior scleritis were included, with a female predilection (77%) and a mean age (± SD; range) of 44.8 (± 14.6; 11-81). Diffuse and necrotizing scleritis were the most and least common subtypes, respectively. Bilateral involvement (28% at baseline, 44.6% eventually) and concurrent keratitis (10.7%) or uveitis (16.9%) were documented in some cases. Most cases were idiopathic (61.5%). Scleritis was the initial manifestation of autoimmune diseases in six patients. In addition to oral and/or intravenous corticosteroid therapy, most of our patients (70.7%) were treated with immunosuppressive regimens. No inter-subtype difference was noted in recurrence rate and time to treatment cessation. Necrotizing subtype was associated with worse visual outcomes and more frequent ocular complications.

Despite limitations in data collection and follow-up, our findings contribute valuable insights into the clinical characteristics and management of scleritis in a group of Iranian patients for the first time.