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Title: Azathioprine in severe uveitis of Behçet's disease.
Author: Saadoun D, Wechsler B, Terrada C, Hajage D, Le Thi Huong D, Resche-Rigon M, Cassoux N, Le Hoang P, Amoura Z, Bodaghi B, Cacoub P.
Journal: Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken); 2010 Dec; 62(12):1733-8. PubMed ID: 20665749.
Abstract:
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the efficacy and tolerance of azathioprine in severe uveitis related to Behçet's disease (BD). METHODS: We reported 157 consecutive patients with severe uveitis (active posterior uveitis or panuveitis) fulfilling the international criteria for BD and treated with corticosteroids (0.5-1 mg/kg/day) and azathioprine (2.5 mg/kg/day). Long-term outcome and factors associated with complete remission were assessed. RESULTS: Mean±SD age at diagnosis was 29.9±10.1 years, with 71.3% men. At baseline, 59 patients (37.6%) had loss of useful vision, 54 (34.4%) had retinal vasculitis, 66 (42.0%) had panuveitis, and 132 (84.1%) had bilateral uveitis. Following azathioprine therapy, 81 patients (51.6%) were complete responders, 65 (41.4%) were partial responders, and 11 (7%) were nonresponders. The visual acuity significantly improved (P<0.001), and a significant decrease in the mean oral prednisone dosage (55.3 to 10.5 mg/day; P<0.001) was observed after therapy. Patients with retinal vasculitis (odds ratio [OR] 0.45 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.2-0.9], P=0.02) and severe visual loss (OR 0.28 [95% CI 0.2-0.7], P<0.0001) at diagnosis were less likely to be complete responders. Azathioprine was well tolerated, with only 3 withdrawals due to hepatotoxic effects (n=2) and bacterial septicemia (n=1). CONCLUSION: Azathioprine represents an effective and safe therapy in patients with severe uveitis of BD.

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