Effect of long term corticosteroid therapy on the eyes of Egyptian children with rheumatic heart disease and nephrotic syndrome

ABSTRACT

This study was carried out on 64 children; 10 cases served controls and 54 cases, with different etiological diagnoses, were on prolonged prednisone therapy for periods ranging from 1 1/2 months to seven years. Of these cases 29.6% developed PSC, most of the cases were bilateral and symmetrical and were correlated to the dose and duration of steroids. It was also noted that PSC tends to occur in nephrotic syndrome patients with stunted height and good weight while in rheumatic heart diseases it tends to develop in cases with lower limits of normal for their height and weight. It is recommended that ophthalmological examinations be carried out in a regular pattern in patients receiving long term oral steroid therapy