Quality of Life in Patients with Noninfectious Uveitis Treated with or without Systemic Anti-inflammatory Therapy.

PURPOSE: To compare vision-related (VR-QOL) and health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) in patients with noninfectious uveitis treated with systemic anti-inflammatory therapy versus nonsystemic therapy. METHODS: A prospective, cross-sectional study design was employed. VR-QOL and HR-QOL were assessed by the 25-Item Visual Function Questionnaire (VFQ-25) and the Short Form 12-Item Health Survey (SF-12), respectively. Multivariate regression analysis was performed to assess the VR-QOL and HR-QOL based on treatment. RESULTS: Among the 80 patients, the median age was 51 years with 28 males (35%). The adjusted effect of treatment modality on VR-QOL or HR-QOL showed no statistically significant difference in all subscores of VFQ-25 or physical component score (PCS) and mental component score (MCS) of SF-12. Systemic therapy did not compromise VR-QOL or HR-QOL compared to nonsystemic therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Systemic therapy can be effectively used to control serious cases of noninfectious uveitis without significant relative adverse impact on quality of life.