LONGITUDINAL ANALYSIS OF HLA ASSOCIATED RISKS FOR IRIDOCYCLITIS IN JUVENILE RHEUMATOID-ARTHRITIS

The risk of iridocyclitis in children with early onset pauciarticular juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (EOPA-JRA) has been shown to be associated with certain HLA haplotypes. Our report contains an actuarial analysis, using one-year intervals, of 161 subjects and estimates haplotype specific risks. Individuals who possess the major susceptibility haplotype HLA-DR5 (11) developed eye disease earlier and with a greater frequency than did those with the protective HLA-DR1 haplotype. Highly significant differences were found between the resulting life-table curves for HLA-DR5 and HLA-DR1 positive subjects (p = 0.00003). These time oriented risk estimates may aid clinicians in determining more precisely the probability of iridocyclitis throughout the course of the disease in children with EOPA-JRA.