Pars planitis: epidemiology, treatment, and association with multiple sclerosis

During retrospective and prospective studies, we attempted to determine the clinical characteristics, treatment, and visual outcome of patients with p ars planitis and to evaluate the association between pars planitis and mult iple sclerosis (MS). The retrospective study included 44 patients with pars planitis, who had been examined between October 1986 and January 1999. We analyzed age, sex, visual acuity (VA), median follow-up time, and medical a nd surgical treatments. The prospective study, which included 21 consecutiv e patients with pars planitis, was performed to determine the presence of M S. In the retrospective study, the mean patient age was 22.4 years (SD +/- 11.5) and the median follow-up was 34.9 months (SD +/- 27.2) Complications included macular edema (47.7%), vitreous opacities (38.6%), papillitis (38. 6%), vasculitis (36.4%), and cataract (20.5%). Forty patients (90.9%) had a final bilateral VA better than 20/40. In the prospective study, magnetic r esonance imaging (MRI) was performed. Demyelinating lesions were found in 1 0 (47.6%) of the 21 patients and relapsing-remitting clinically definite MS was diagnosed in seven (33.3%) With the exception of age, no significantly statistical differences were observed when the visual prognosis and the cl inical and epidemiologic characteristics were compared between the two grou ps of patients with and without associated MS; a diagnosis of MS was more f requently made in patients over 25 years of age. With appropriate treatment , patients with pars planitis have a good visual prognosis. Because the pre sence of demyelinating lesions seems to be high among patients with pars pl anitis, MRI should be considered, especially in patients over 25 years of a ge.