Brazilian guidelines for the monitoring and treatment of pediatric allergic conjunctivitis.

Allergic conjunctivitis is an increasingly frequent condition with a higher prevalence in children. It can be debilitating and is responsible for a great economic burden. These guidelines were developed on the basis of the medical literature (PubMed/Medline database) and the experience of an Expert Committee composed of members of the Brazilian Society of Pediatric Ophthalmology, the Brazilian Council of Ophthalmology, the Brazilian Society of Pediatrics, and the Brazilian Association of Allergy and Immunology. Allergic conjunctivitis is considered to be controlled when the ocular symptoms are not uncomfortable or are present, at most, on 2 days a week; the visual analog scale score is below 5; and the degree of conjunctival hyperemia is graded 0 or 1 on the Efron scale. Allergic conjunctivitis should be classified as mild, moderate, severe, and vision-threatening for adequate treatment and monitoring of frequency. The present document is a guideline for diagnosing, treating, and monitoring pediatric allergic conjunctivitis considering the clinical and demographic aspects of allergic conditions in Brazil.

The Detection of Occult Retinal Vasculitis on Fluorescein Angiography in Pediatric Uveitis.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the usefulness of fluorescein angiography (FA) to detect occult retinal vasculitis in children with otherwise apparently quiescent intermediate uveitis, posterior uveitis, and panuveitis based on clinical examination alone. DESIGN: Retrospective chart review. PARTICIPANTS: Pediatric uveitis patients evaluated at the Children's Medical Center in Dallas, Texas. METHODS: Retrospective chart review of pediatric patients treated with immunosuppressive therapy in the uveitis clinic at the Children's Medical Center, Dallas, Texas, between September 2015 and September 2016. Patients with noninfectious uveitis requiring immunosuppressive therapy, in which posterior segment involvement (intermediate uveitis, posterior uveitis, or panuveitis) was known or suspected, and whose disease apparently was quiescent on clinical examination were included. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The incidence of occult retinal vasculitis detected on FA alone. RESULTS: Fourteen pediatric patients met inclusion criteria. Six patients (43%) demonstrated intermediate uveitis, and 8 patients (57%) demonstrated panuveitis. Eleven patients (79%) were found to show additional evidence of occult retinal vasculitis on FA. CONCLUSIONS: Fluorescein angiography can be an important tool in evaluating pediatric uveitis patients with known or suspected posterior involvement for the presence of occult retinal vasculitis. Failure to control occult retinal vasculitis adequately may be a contributing factor to seemingly recalcitrant cases, inability to wean off immunomodulatory therapy, and long-term complications leading to poor prognosis.

Successful treatment with infliximab after adalimumab failure in pediatric noninfectious uveitis.

PURPOSE: To describe the use of infliximab after adalimumab failure in the treatment of pediatric noninfectious uveitis. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on the medical records of pediatric patients with noninfectious uveitis treated with infliximab for a minimum of 6 months after previously failing to achieve steroid-free remission using adalimumab at the University of Texas Medical School and Children's Medical Center between September 2015 and March 2018. Rates of achieving disease activity quiescence and steroid-free remission as well as incidence of adverse events were calculated. RESULTS: A total of 13 patients with noninfectious uveitis refractory to treatment with adalimumab met inclusion criteria. Three (23%) had anterior uveitis, 4 (31%) had pars planitis, and 6 (46%) had panuveitis. Eleven (85%) patients had preexisting ocular comorbidities. Of these, 4 (31%) had retinal vasculitis, and 1 (7.7%) had cystoid macular edema. There was a 100% response rate to treatment with infliximab following failure to achieve disease quiescence on adalimumab. At mean follow-up time of 21 months (range, 8-31) from initiation of infliximab, there was a reduction in steroid dependence from 100% to 15% after transitioning from adalimumab to infliximab (P < 0.001). Nine patients (69%) had achieved steroid-free remission on infliximab therapy. The mean time to steroid-free remission was 8.7 months. CONCLUSIONS: In our study cohort, infliximab was used successfully in all cases of recalcitrant pediatric noninfectious uveitis that previously failed adalimumab therapy.

Brazilian guidelines for the monitoring and treatment of pediatric allergic conjunctivitis / Diretrizes brasileiras sobre o monitoramento e tratamento da conjuntivite alérgica pediátrica

ABSTRACT Allergic conjunctivitis is an increasingly frequent condition with a higher prevalence in children. It can be debilitating and is responsible for a great economic burden. These guidelines were developed on the basis of the medical literature (PubMed/Medline database) and the experience of an Expert Committee composed of members of the Brazilian Society of Pediatric Ophthalmology, the Brazilian Council of Ophthalmology, the Brazilian Society of Pediatrics, and the Brazilian Association of Allergy and Immunology. Allergic conjunctivitis is considered to be controlled when the ocular symptoms are not uncomfortable or are present, at most, on 2 days a week; the visual analog scale score is below 5; and the degree of conjunctival hyperemia is graded 0 or 1 on the Efron scale. Allergic conjunctivitis should be classified as mild, moderate, severe, and vision-threatening for adequate treatment and monitoring of frequency. The present document is a guideline for diagnosing, treating, and monitoring pediatric allergic conjunctivitis considering the clinical and demographic aspects of allergic conditions in Brazil.

RESUMO A conjuntivite alérgica (CA) é uma condição frequente, debilitante e responsável por grande impacto econômico, proporcionalmente maior quando acomete crianças. Essas diretrizes foram desenvolvidas com base na literatura científica (PubMed/Medline) e na experiência de um Comitê de Especialistas composto por membros da Sociedade Brasileira de Oftalmologia Pediátrica, do Conselho Brasileiro de Oftalmologia, da Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria e da Associação Brasileira de Alergia e Imunologia. A conjuntivite alérgica é considerada controlada quando os sintomas não são desconfortáveis ou estão presentes por dois dias na semana; o escore visual pela escala analógica é inferior a 5 e o grau de hiperemia conjuntival é de 0-1 pela escala de Efron. A conjuntivite alérgica deve ser classificada em leve, moderada, grave e com risco de perda visual para tratamento e frequência de monitoramento adequados. Esta diretriz orienta o diagnóstico, tratamento e monitoramento da conjuntivite alérgica pediátrica, considerando aspectos clínicos e demográficos das condições alérgicas no Brasil.