Syphilitic uveitis: Vilnius region perspetive: 6 case reports

Purpose To examine the clinical manifestations of syphilitic uveitis in Vilnius region population over four years and review trends in incidence Methods A retrospective case series of 6 patients (8 eyes) with syphilitic uveitis who were managed in Vilnius region between 2009 and 2012 Results Between 2009 and 2012 were 6 patients (mean age 42,67 years, range 28 - 66) all of them with positive Treponema Pallidum Chemiluminescent Immunoassay (CLIA) and negative Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) serology. Venereal Disease Research Labarotory (VDRL) and/or Treponema Pallidum Heamaglutination Assay (TPHA) and/or non – reactive Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) were obtained in all 6 patients. Posterior uveitis was the commonest presenting finding (5/8 eyes), panuveitis was seen in 3 eyes at presentation. Posterior uveitis manifests as chorioretinitis with or without vitritis, optic neuritis, neuroretinitis. Panuveitis – granulomatous anterior uveitis, neuroretinitis, vitritis. One patient with bilateral involvement, had rare symptom – syphilitic roseola of the iris. Five patients were treated with intravenal benzylpenicilin and one – oral cefriaxone Conclusion Ocular syphilis presented most frequently as posterior segment inflammation. An increasing trend in the number of cases of ocular syphilis in the past four years was observed in Vilnius region population