Adalimumab for juvenile idiopathic arthritis-associated uveitis

To assess the long-term outcomes and complications of patients with uveitis from juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) treated with adalimumab.

Prospective interventional case series. All patients who underwent treatment with adalimumab for JIA and anterior uveitis were prospectively included in the study. The anterior chamber inflammation was evaluated according to the Standardization of Uveitis Nomenclature criteria.

Twenty-one patients (16 females, five males, 38 eyes) were included in the study. Mean age of patients at referral was 11.1 ± 3.8 (5–17) years. Before initiation of treatment, mean duration of arthritis was 7.0 ± 5.5 (median, 6) months, mean duration of uveitis was 7.0 ± 4.4 (median, 7) months. Oligoarticular arthritis was present in 15 cases (71 %), polyarticular arthritis in six cases (28 %). After a mean follow-up of 18.2 ± 7.7 (9–41) months, resolution of anterior chamber inflammation was obtained in 29/38 eyes (76 %). The anterior uveitis flare rate during the 12 months prior to enrollment was 1.6 ± 0.4/year, and was reduced during adalimumab treatment to 0.7 ± 0.3/year (p < 0.001). A significant decrease of the number of relapses/month was present after onset of treatment with adalimumab (0.18 ± 0.2 before versus 0.02 ± 0.1 after treatment onset, p < 0.001). No significant correlation was found between relapse number and age, sex, type of JIA and doses of previous steroid treatment (p > 0.05).

Adalimumab showed to be effective and relatively safe for treatment of JIA-associated uveitis.