Evaluation of the Long-Term Efficacy and Safety of Infliximab Treatment for Uveitis in Behçet's Disease: A Multicenter Study

Purpose To evaluate the long-term efficacy and safety of infliximab for the treatment of uveitis in Behcet's disease (BD). Design Retrospective multicenter study using a questionnaire. Participants A total of 164 consecutive patients with BD treated with infliximab for more than 1 year were studied. The mean age at initiation of infliximab treatment was 42.6±11.7 years, and the mean treatment duration was 32.9±14.4 months. Methods Data before and at the last visit during infliximab treatment were analyzed in 4 groups divided by duration of treatment: group A (n = 43, 12– Main Outcome Measures Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), relapse of ocular inflammation, numbers of ocular inflammatory attacks per year, and adverse effects of infliximab therapy. Results The frequency of ocular attacks decreased in all groups (from 5.3±3.0 to 1.0±0.3 in group A, 4.8±4.6 to 1.4±0.3 in group B, 4.1±2.9 to 0.9±0.3 in group C, and 9.5±5.8 to 1.6±0.5 in group D; all P P Conclusions Infliximab reduced the frequency of ocular attacks and improved visual acuity in patients with BD-related uveitis and was generally well tolerated with few serious adverse events.