Behcet's disease (BD) involves multisystem vasculitis of unknown origin. Ocular manifestations of BD mostly include bilateral panuveitis and retinal vasculitis, which are very challenging to treat. Interferon alfa-2a (IFN) has been recently introduced for treating refractory Behcet uveitis, mainly in Germany and Turkey. Nonetheless, there is so far no consensus about the ideal treatment regimen of IFN for Behcet uveitis. We report our experience of IFN treatment in five Korean BD patients with refractory uveitis. All patients complained of oral ulcers; one patient had a positive pathergy test and 2 showed the presence of HLA-B51. Immunosuppressive agents used prior to IFN treatment included cyclosporine and methotrexate. The IFN treatment was commenced with a dose of 6-9 MIU/day for 7 days, adjusted according to individual ocular manifestations, tapered down to 3 MIU three times in a week, and then discontinued. All patients showed positive response to IFN treatment; 50% of them showed complete response without additional major ocular inflammation during the follow-up period. Other BD symptoms also improved after IFN treatment in most cases. After treatment, the relapse rate and the required dose of oral corticosteroid were decreased in most cases, showing a significant steroid-sparing effect. However, the visual acuity was not improved in most cases due to irreversible macular sequelae. Despite the small sample size of this study, we suggest that, in Korean patients, IFN is an effective treatment modality for BD uveitis as was observed in German and Turkish patients.
Adult ; Behcet Syndrome/complications/diagnosis/*drug therapy ; Chronic Disease ; Cyclosporine/therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Immunosuppressive Agents/administration & dosage ; Interferon-alpha/*therapeutic use ; Male ; Recombinant Proteins/therapeutic use ; Recurrence ; Remission Induction ; Treatment Outcome ; Turkey ; Uveitis/diagnosis/*drug therapy/etiology ; Visual Acuity

PURPOSE: To present a case of a unilateral diffuse retinal hemorrhage in a 15-year-old girl, who underwent bilateral trabeculectomy for steroid induced glaucoma. METHODS: Despite the maximally tolerable medical treatment, IOP in the right eye remained above 50 mmHg for four months, and was simultaneously elevated in the left eye. So we performed bilateral trabeculectomy. RESULTS: On the first postoperative day, diffuse retinal hemorrhages were observed in the right eye; however, no retinal hemorrhage was found in the left eye. The hemorrhages resolved completely without consequences two months later. CONCLUSIONS: In the case of high IOP for a long period, sudden lowering of IOP may acutely increase the blood flow and consequently rupture multiple retinal capillaries because of altered autoregulatory function. Special care is therefore needed to prevent an abrupt fall in IOP before, during, and after surgery, especially when IOP has been highly elevated for an extended period.
Administration, Topical ; Adolescent ; Female ; Fluorescein Angiography ; Fundus Oculi ; Glaucoma/chemically induced/*surgery ; Humans ; Retinal Hemorrhage/diagnosis/*etiology/pathology ; Steroids/administration & dosage/adverse effects/therapeutic use ; Trabeculectomy/*adverse effects ; Uveitis/drug therapy