Effects of anti-TNF biologic drugs on uveitis severity in Behcet patients: systematic review and Meta-analysis

AIM: To investigate effects of anti-TNF biologic drugs on uveitis severity (comparing visual acuity logMAR levels) in Behcet patients. METHODS: Three databases PubMed, Scopus, and the Web of Science were searched for qualified papers focusing on the anti-TNF-alpha factors treatment in Behcet's disease (BD)-associated uveitis. Studies that were designed pre and post anti-TNF drug treatment, were selected. After determining the search strategy for this study, the relevant data were extracted. RESULTS: The initial search was performed in the target databases and a total of about 1458 articles were found. Fifteen articles were selected for systematic review and only 12 of them had inclusion criteria for Meta-analysis (with visual acuity data). The mean dose of prednisolone before and after biological treatments was reported in 5 studies (28.56 and 7.56 mg/kg, respectively). Also, the preliminary results indicate a significant reduction in visual acuity logMAR levels (MD=-1.5 IU/L, 95%CI: -2.1, -0.01). CONCLUSION: Biological drugs significantly reduce the dose of prednisolone and affect visual acuity values.