Cyclosporine A for the treatment of necrotizing scleritis and corneal melting in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Abstract

Two of the ocular complications of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), necrotizing scleritis and keratolysis, have been associated with poor response to standard ocular therapy, and thus poor ocular outcome. We describe 6 patients with active ocular disease and active RA who failed to respond to disease modifying agents or immunosuppressive therapy and whose ocular and arthritic disease subsequently responded to cyclosporine A. Drug related complications were consistent with those reported for patients receiving similar doses for RA.