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
Review
. 2025 Jun 1;45(6):1175-1183.
doi: 10.1097/IAE.0000000000004413.

THE HETEROGENEOUS PRESENTATIONS OF DE NOVO AND RECURRENT OCULAR INFLAMMATION AFTER COVID-19 VACCINATION : A Multicenter Report and a Review of the Literature

Sruthi Arepalli  1 , Laura Kopplin  2 , Edmund Tsui  3 , Daniel Brill  4 , Lucia Sobrin  5 , George Papaliodis  5 , Dana Darwish  6 , Veena Raiji  7   8 , Priya Janardhana  9 , Parisa Emami-Naeini  10 , Lish Nore  11 , Meredith Parker  11 , Akshay S Thomas  11
Affiliations
Review

THE HETEROGENEOUS PRESENTATIONS OF DE NOVO AND RECURRENT OCULAR INFLAMMATION AFTER COVID-19 VACCINATION : A Multicenter Report and a Review of the Literature

Sruthi Arepalli et al. Retina. .

Abstract

Purpose: To describe the patterns of ocular inflammation after coronavirus disease 2019 vaccination, assess underlying commonalities, and understand outcomes.

Methods: Retrospective, multicenter cohort study, conducted between 2020 and 2021. Patients with no previous uveitis history ( de novo ) or a known uveitis history (recurrent) who developed ocular inflammation within 42 days of coronavirus disease 2019 vaccination were identified. Characteristics of the uveitis, treatment approaches, and clinical outcomes were assessed.

Results: Fifty-five eyes of 39 patients with ocular inflammation temporally related to vaccination were identified. Twenty-two patients (36 eyes) were de novo , while 17 (19 eyes) were recurrent. Anterior uveitis was most common. HLA-B27 positivity was found in 6 (27.2%) de novo patients, and 5 (29.4%) recurrent patients. Most patients required only observation, topical, or systemic corticosteroids. Among vaccinated patients, 12.3% of new uveitis referrals during the study period were related to coronavirus disease 2019 vaccination. Among patients with a history of quiescent uveitis, only 0.85% experienced a flare after vaccination.

Conclusion: Most inflammation thought to be secondary to coronavirus disease 2019 vaccination achieved quiescence with observation or steroids, and the overall incidence is low. Anterior uveitis was the most common. HLA-B27 positivity occurred at a higher rate than reported in the baseline population.

Keywords: COVID-19; intraocular inflammation; vaccination.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Our World in Data. Global Change Data Lab; 2023. Available at: https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/weekly-covid-deaths . Accessed April 6, 2023.
    1. He X, Su J, Ma Y, et al. A comprehensive analysis of the efficacy and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines. Front Immunol 2022;13:945930.
    1. US Coronavirus vaccine tracker. USA Facts; 2023. Available at: https://usafacts.org/visualizations/covid-vaccine-tracker-states . Accessed April 6, 2023.
    1. Safary A, Esalatmanesh K, Eftekharsadat AT, et al. Autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic diseases post-COVID-19 vaccination. Int Immunopharmacol 2022;110:109061.
    1. Singh RB, Parmar UPS, Kahale F, et al. Vaccine-associated uveitis after COVID-19 vaccination: vaccine adverse event reporting system database analysis. Ophthalmology 2023;130:179–186.

Substances