Surgically induced necrotizing scleritis (SINS): Is it a standalone condition or a variant of necrotizing scleritis?

PURPOSE: To report the clinical pattern of surgically induced necrotizing scleritis (SINS) in a tertiary eye care center in Southern India.

METHODS

Retrospective analysis of all SINS cases visiting the uveitis clinic of a tertiary eye institute between January 2009 and April 2019.

RESULTS

In total, 15 patients with a median age of 65 (IQR: 52-70) years were included in the study. Male (53%) predominance was noted, and SINS was unilateral (100%) in all cases. Most (87%) of the patients developed SINS after a single surgical procedure, with a median onset period of 251 (IQR: 127-1095) days. None of these patients had any evidence of systemic association. Ocular hypertension (n = 3, 20%), and cataract (n = 5, 33%) were the most common complications. When compared with a cohort of patients with idiopathic necrotizing scleritis, the index study did not find any statistically significant difference between SINS and idiopathic scleritis.

CONCLUSION

SINS is idiopathic necrotizing scleritis rather than an independent entity of scleritis.