Novel treatment regimen of Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease with a reduced dose of corticosteroids combined with immunosuppressive agents

Purpose: To investigate the effectiveness, visual outcome, and prognostic factors of Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease treatment with a reduced dose of corticosteroids combined with immunosuppressive agents. Methods: The clinical characteristics, auxiliary examinations, treatment result, visual outcome, and prognostic factors in VKH patients were analyzed. Results: A total of 998 VKH patients were divided into posterior uveitis group (Group1), anterior uveal involvement group (Group 2), and recurrent granulomatous anterior uveitis group (Group 3). Reduced doses of corticosteroids combined with immunosuppressive agents were used for 1-1.5 years. Uveitis was controlled in 100%, 100%, and 96.8% of these three groups, respectively. Visual improvement and stability was observed in 98.1%, 96.5%, and 88.3%, respectively. Treatment after disease onset, visual acuity at first visit, and 1 month after treatment was positively associated with BCVA at last visit (p < 0.05). Conclusion: A reduced dose of corticosteroids combined with immunosuppressive agents effectively controlled the intraocular inflammation and improved visual acuity in most Chinese VKH patients.