Revised diagnostic criteria for Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease: Report of aninternational committee on nomenclature

PURPOSE: To present revised criteria for the diagnosis of Vogt-Koyanagi-Har ada disease, a chronic, bilateral, granulomatous ocular and multisystem inf lammatory condition of unknown cause, METHODS: Diagnostic criteria and nomenclature were subjects of discussion a t the First International Workshop on Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada Disease on Octob er 19-21, 1999, at the University of California, Los Angeles, Conference Ce nter, Lake Arrowhead, California. A committee appointed by the workshop par ticipants was charged with drafting revised criteria for Vogt-Koyanagi-Hara da disease, based on discussions held during the conference. This article i s the consensus committee report. RESULTS: New criteria, taking into account the multisystem nature of Vogt-K oyanagi-Harada disease, with allowance for the different ocular findings pr esent in the early and late stages of the disease, were formulated and agre ed upon by the committee. These criteria are based on additional knowledge and experience of experts in the field and are believed to reflect disease features more fully than previously published criteria, CONCLUSIONS: The revised definition of Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease, with e xpanded diagnostic criteria, will facilitate performance of studies involvi ng homogeneous populations of patients, at various stages of disease, that address unanswered questions regarding treatment and disease mechanisms, (C ) 2001 by Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.