Prevalence and clinical impact of antiretinal antibodies in uveitis

Purpose To determine the prevalence of serum antiretinal antibodies (ARAs) among patients with uveitis and establish their clinical relevance. Methods This prospective study assessed the presence of ARAs by indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) using primate retina in 126 patients with uveitis and 60 healthy controls. Clinical data of uveitis patients were collected from medical charts and included the classification of uveitis, cause of uveitis or its association with systemic disease, stage and activity of uveitis and specific retinal features. Correlations between the presence of specific ARAs and various clinical characteristics were analysed. Results The presence of ARAs was observed in 49 of 104 (47%) of patients with uveitis and in 10 of 59 (17%) of healthy controls (p