Occurrence of vernal keratoconjunctivitis in children infected with human immunodeficiency virus

ABSTRACT

Purpose: To study the occurrence of vernal keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) as an ocular manifestation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in pediatric patients. Methods: A retrospective study was done on the observations of cases of HIV?positive children. All seropositive patients from the Anti?Retroviral Therapy clinic were referred to the department of ophthalmology for evaluation. Retrospective correlation of CD4 count with active cases of VKC was done. All patients underwent a comprehensive ophthalmic evaluation including visual acuity, slit lamp and dilated fundus examination. Results: A total of 72 children were included, 70 males and 2 females. Of these, 63 (87.5%) had VKC, three (4.2%) had cataract, two (2.8%) had cytomegalovirus retinitis retinitis, and four (5.5%) had no ophthalmic findings. Conclusion: There is a an evident association of HIV, VKC cases, and reduced CD4 count. More research is required on this topic.