Tubercular uveitis (TBU) is an inflammation/infection of the eye secondary to Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. The difficulty in making the diagnosis has resulted in variable prevalence and clinical response rates. We aimed to determine the global prevalence of TBU in uveitis patients stratified by TB high-burden countries (HBCs) and non-HBCs and by geographic regions and the clinical response of TBU to antitubercular treatment We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of TBU studies published in PubMed, Scopus and EMBASE, up to 30 June 2020. A random effects model was used for all meta-analyses. Of 5018 articles identified, 70 prevalence studies (65,607 uveitis and 3,166 TBU cases) and 18 clinical outcome studies (1570 TBU cases; 1304 responded to ATT) were analyzed. The overall weighted prevalence of TBU was 4.0% [95% CI, 3-5]; in TB HBCs it was 7.0% [95% CI, 5-11], non-HBCs 3.0% [95% CI, 2-4] and sub-Saharan Africa 11.0% [95% CI, 8-15]. The overall weighted clinical response was 82.0% [95% CI, 75-89]. Despite the difficulty in diagnosing TBU, the prevalence is expectantly higher in HBCs, and sub-Saharan Africa and the clinical outcome is poor. Standardization of diagnostic criteria and ATT is warranted in future cohort studies.
Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Author