Reperfusion of retinal ischemia in retinal occlusive vasculitis with nicotinic acid and infliximab in Adamantiades-Behçet's disease

Ahmad Al-Moujahed; Doan Luong Hien; Amir Akhavanrezayat; Brandon Huy Pham; Than Trong Tuong Ngoc; Huy Luong Doan; Çigdem Yaşar; Sherin Lajevardi; Huy Vu Nguyen; Quan Dong Nguyen

doi:10.1016/j.ajoc.2021.101027

Reperfusion of retinal ischemia in retinal occlusive vasculitis with nicotinic acid and infliximab in Adamantiades-Behçet's disease

Am J Ophthalmol Case Rep. 2021 Feb 5:21:101027. doi: 10.1016/j.ajoc.2021.101027. eCollection 2021 Mar.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Byers Eye Institute, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, USA.
² Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine, Saigon, Viet Nam.
³ Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, Kansas City, MO, USA.

Abstract

To describe a case of ischemic retinal vasculitis in Adamantiades-Behçet disease (ABD) that demonstrated significant resolution of retinal ischemia following treatment with nicotinic acid and infliximab.Observations: A 12-year-old male with a history of recurrent oral ulcers, fevers, and failure to thrive was admitted to the hospital with fever, oral and perirectal mucositis, and poor oral intake one month before presentation to uveitis clinic. He was suspected to have ABD and was treated with three doses of intravenous (IV) methylprednisolone (30 mg/kg/day) which led to improvement in his systemic symptoms. One week after admission, he complained of decreased vision in both eyes (OU), during which he was found to have anterior uveitis in OU and was referred to the Uveitis Clinic. Upon examination, his visual acuity was 20/80 in OU. Intraocular pressures were within normal limits. Anterior chamber evaluation revealed 0.5+ cells and 1.5+ flare in OU. Posterior examination revealed pale optic nerve, sclerosis and vascular sheathing of retinal arteries, and collateral vessels in OU. Fluorescein angiography (FA) showed optic disc leakage and widespread retinal ischemia in OU. The patient was diagnosed with retinal occlusive vasculitis associated with ABD. He was initially treated with infliximab (5 mg/kg), systemic methylprednisolone, and mycophenolate mofetil. Three months later, his BCVA improved to 20/70 OU with slight improvement of retinal ischemia on FA. Nicotinic acid was added to his treatment regimen. Due to logistic challenges, he did not receive infliximab treatment during the subsequent three months. However, three months after beginning nicotinic acid therapy, FA revealed significant improvement of his retinal ischemia OU. Conclusion: To our knowledge, the index report is the first to show that nicotinic acid may improve retinal ischemia in vaso-occlusive retinal vasculitis and be an integral part of the treatment regimen of this sight-threatening condition.

Keywords: Behçet's disease; Niacin; Nicotinic acid; Retinal ischemia; Vaso-occlusive retinal vasculitis.

Publication types

Case Reports