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- systemic lupus erythematosus
- keratoconjunctival epitheliopathy
- inflammation
- impression cytology
- transmission electron microscopy
Conjunctivocorneal involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is quite infrequent.1–3 We report the impression cytological (IC), immunohistochemical (IHC), and transmission electron microscopic (TEM) features of a case with unusual keratoconjunctival epitheliopathy refractory to medical treatment.
Case report
A 76 year old woman was referred with a long history of bilateral foreign body sensation. She had been on topical antibiotics, artificial tears, corticosteroids, hyaluronate, and aciclovir without improvement. At initial examination, biomicroscopy revealed diffuse, translucent, disseminated peripheral corneal intraepithelial coin lesions with a cystic appearance (fig 1A, B), also in the bulbar conjunctiva over the limbus (fig 1C). Fluorescein staining revealed increased permeability with negative staining. Schirmer’s test was normal in both eyes. The patient had systemic and dermatological features diagnosed as SLE and had been taking prednisolone 7.5 mg/day for 1 year. Conjunctival cultures were negative for infectious processes. A thorough systemic evaluation for other systemic diseases and serum antibodies for herpes simplex virus (HSV-1, HSV-2), varicella zoster …
Footnotes
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The authors have no proprietary interests in any products mentioned in this manuscript.