Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jan 1;27(1):34-39.
doi: 10.1097/RHU.0000000000001162.

Structural Retinal Assessment Using Optical Coherence Tomography and Fundus Fluorescein Angiography in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Patients

Shawky A Fouad  1 , Soheir M Esmat Mahmoud Ali  2 , Alshaimaa Rezk Lotfy Rezk Alnaggar  1 , Safaa Mahfouz  1 , Mervat Essam  1 , Hala El-Gendy  1
Affiliations

Structural Retinal Assessment Using Optical Coherence Tomography and Fundus Fluorescein Angiography in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Patients

Shawky A Fouad et al. J Clin Rheumatol. .

Abstract

Background: Ocular manifestations in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) can be the presenting symptom of the disease or a sight-threatening complication.

Objectives: To detect different structural retinal changes in patients with SLE who had no ophthalmological symptoms and investigate the relationship between different retinal changes and the disease activity assessed by the Systemic Lupus Erythromatosus Disease Activity Index score.

Study design: A descriptive pilot study from January 2016 to January 2017.

Methods: Fifty-two eyes of 26 patients diagnosed to have SLE were examined using visual acuity assessment, fundus examination, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA).

Results: Fundus fluorescein angiography showed different changes in the form of venular occlusion and optic nerve leakage. There were also degenerative changes in the form of alternating hyperfluorescent and hypofluorescent areas outside the arcades as well as peripapillary areas and capillary dropout. Optical coherence tomography detected signs of degenerative thinning, incomplete posterior vitreous detachment, and epiretinal membrane. A significant correlation was found between SLE activity and the changes detected by FFA (p = 0.017). However, there was no significant correlation between disease activity and changes detected by OCT. Optical coherence tomography changes were significantly correlated with the duration of hydroxychloroquine use of more than 5 years (p = 0.032). There was no correlation between FFA or OCT changes and proteinuria or antiphospholipid antibodies.

Conclusions: Fundus fluorescein angiography is more sensitive in detecting early subclinical retinal changes in patients with SLE, which correlates with disease activity, whereas OCT is more sensitive in detecting changes resulting from hydroxychloroquine use.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

References

    1. Larosa M, Iaccarino L, Gatto M, et al. Advances in the diagnosis and classification of systemic lupus erythematosus. Expert Rev Clin Immunol . 2016;12:1309–1320.
    1. Sui W, Hou X, Che W, et al. Hematopoietic and mesenchymal stem cell transplantation for severe and refractory systemic lupus erythematosus. Clin Immunol . 2013;148:186–197.
    1. Shoughy SS, Tabbara KF. Ocular findings in systemic lupus erythematosus. Saudi J Ophthalmol . 2016;30:117–121.
    1. Nag TC, Wadhwa S. Vascular changes of the retina and choroid in systemic lupus erythematosus: pathology and pathogenesis. Curr Neurovasc Res . 2006;3:159–168.
    1. Sivaraj RR, Durrani OM, Denniston AK, et al. Ocular manifestations of systemic lupus erythematosus. Rheumatology . 2007;46:1757–1762.

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources