From: Ocular Surgery News, April 1, 2004

According to a rheumatologist who specializes in uveitis, those patients with a sudden onset of unilateral anterior uveitis may have one of a group of seronegative spondyloarthropathies.

James T. Rosenbaum, MD, of the Casey Eye Institute says that clinicians should obtain a history of lower back pain and consider testing for the HLA-B27 gene. “Of all the systematic conditions [clinicians] are going to encounter in [their] practice, for the vast majority of [them], the seronegative spondyloarthropathies are the most common.” He added.

Dr. Rosenbaum went on to explain Ankylosing Spondylitis and that the prevalence of seronegative spondyloarthropathies in the United States may be as high as 1%. He believes that as many as forty percent of patients with ankylosing spondylitis or reactive arthritis will develop acute anterior uveitis.