Repeat Conjunctival Biopsy after Immunomodulatory Therapy for Ocular Mucous Membrane Pemphigoid.

ABSTRACTPurpose: To evaluate whether conjunctival biopsy findings in patients with ocular mucous membrane pemphigoid (MMP) persist as positive or revert to negative following treatment with immunomodulatory therapy (IMT).Methods: Patients with biopsy-proven MMP were treated with IMT for at least 2 years before undergoing repeat conjunctival biopsy for immunofluorescence microscopy. Their records were reviewed and findings evaluated to ascertain which patients’ biopsies showed antibody deposition on the conjunctival basement membrane.Results: Following 2 years of IMT, conjunctival biopsies showed persistent antibody deposition in two patients, and were negative in four patients.Conclusions: Conjunctival biopsies in patients with ocular MMP may show reversion to inactive disease following IMT. Post-treatment biopsy might be clinically useful as a means of evaluating the efficacy of therapy in this chronic disease.