Frequency
Ethnic groups
Sex
Mortality/Morbidity
Age
Corneal ulcer associated with autoinflammatory diseases does not affect children. Except for the malignant form of Mooren ulcer, patients with this pathology are usually older than 30 years. Wegener granulomatosis can affect all age groups. Scleroderma usually starts in individuals aged 30-50 years. Polyarteritis nodosa is more frequent in middle-aged males.
Wegener granulomatosis has no ethnic predilection.
RA primarily affects middle-aged females. Scleroderma is 3-4 times more common in women than in men. Polyarteritis nodosa is 2.5 times more likely to affect males than females. No sexual predilection exists with Wegener granulomatosis.
The prevalence of ulcerative keratitis in patients with RA was 1.4% in a retrospective study of 589 patients.
Development of a corneal ulcer associated with a connective tissue disease or a vasculitis carries a poor prognosis. Patients who have RA with scleritis and a corneal melt die within 5 years without aggressive treatment. This type of corneal ulcer may lead to corneal thinning and perforation in the perilimbal region or paracentrally.
