Journal article
Rates of Drug-Induced Uveitis: A Review by Medication Class
Clinical ophthalmology (Auckland, N.Z.), v 20(1), pp 1-29
01 Jan 2026
PMID: 41716476
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Purpose: Drug-induced uveitis is an uncommon but clinically important cause of intraocular inflammation across diverse systemic and ophthalmic therapies. As the use of biologics, targeted agents, and chronic ocular medications expands, clinicians need drug class- specific data on risk, phenotype, and clinical course. In this study, we synthesize and review the published literature on drug-induced uveitis, summarizing reported incidence, clinical phenotypes, latency to onset, and time to resolution by medication class, route of administration, and patient-level factors.
Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted with PubMed, Scopus, and the Cochrane Library in September 2025 using terms related to drug-induced and medication-associated uveitis. Articles were included if they discussed human cases of noninfectious uveitis attributed to a specific medication or drug class and were written in English. Data analysis was performed to assess relationships between medication class, medication exposure time, uveitis location, uveitis treatment, and uveitis resolution time. Results: 317 articles with 690 unique patient cases met inclusion criteria for case-level data analysis. The mean age at drug-induced uveitis onset was 54.4 years; most patients were female, 63.4% had bilateral disease, and 74.8% had anterior uveitis. Mean exposure time from first dose to uveitis onset was 197.2 days (SD 497.6; range, 0-6205), and mean resolution time was 61.0 days (SD 157.4; sphonates (9.7%), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors (6.4%), antivirals (5.1%), and disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (4.3%) were the most frequently implicated classes.
Conclusion: Drug-induced uveitis, although rare, represents a broad array of presentations, mechanisms, and clinical course. As systemic and targeted therapeutic use continues to expand, understanding the clinical presenation and course will help patient outcomes and minimize vision-threatening risks.
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Details
- Title
- Rates of Drug-Induced Uveitis: A Review by Medication Class
- Creators
- Raghuram Jasti - Drexel University, College of MedicineZhenghao Wang - Drexel University, College of MedicineLucy Zhou - Drexel UniversityBaotram Nguyen - Drexel UniversityMeghan K. Berkenstock - Drexel University, College of Medicine
- Publication Details
- Clinical ophthalmology (Auckland, N.Z.), v 20(1), pp 1-29
- Publisher
- Dove Medical Press Ltd
- Number of pages
- 29
- Grant note
- Dracopoulos and Hankins Uveitis Research Funds, Baltimore, MD
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- College of Medicine
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:001690758000001
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-105030177026
- Other Identifier
- 991022197148204721
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Ophthalmology