Uveitis Risk Is Increased in Patients With Psoriasis

According to a study published in the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, patients with psoriasis, especially severe psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis (PsA), are at a higher risk for the development and recurrence of uveitis.

Researchers aimed to evaluate the risk of first-occurrence and recurrence of uveitis in patients with psoriasis in the Korean population in a nationwide retrospective cohort study. The risk of uveitis according to the severity of psoriasis, comorbidity of PsA, and location of uveitis was also evaluated in the 317 940 adult patients who had psoriasis and 635 880 matched controls included in the study. Survival analysis and Poisson regression were used to calculate incidence rates (IRs) and estimated IR ratios.

Per 1000 person years, the uveitis incidence rate was 1.18 and the uveitis recurrence rate was 2.31, with the highest recurrence rate within 3 years after psoriasis onset. The IR ratios were 1.14 (95% CI 1.08, 1.2) for uveitis development and  1.16 (95% CI 1.12, 1.21) for uveitis recurrence compared with controls. The corresponding IR ratios for uveitis recurrence were 1.11 (1.06, 1.16) in patients with mild psoriasis, 1.24 (1.16, 1.33) in severe psoriasis, and 1.49 (1.31, 1.7) in PsA.

“Patients with psoriasis had a higher risk of both development and recurrence of uveitis, especially with severe psoriasis and PsA,” concluded the study authors. “The timing of uveitis recurrence was related to the onset of psoriasis, and patients who had psoriasis with PsA had an increased risk of vision-threatening pan-uveitis,” they added.

Reference
Kim BR, Choi SW, Choi CW, et al. Risk of uveitis in patients with psoriasis in Korea: a nationwide population-based cohort study. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. Published online March 23, 2023. doi:10.1111/jdv.19060