Sclerosing orbital inflammation usually bilateral with systemic disease

This retrospective case series compared sclerosing orbital inflammation (SOI) isolated to the orbit and SOI manifesting as part of systemic inflammatory disease. It found that SOI in the setting of multifocal fibrosclerosis (MFF) or other systemic inflammatory disease is often bilateral and associated with an elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR).

The authors reviewed 13 cases from their own database and 68 from the English language? literature. Multifocal fibrosclerosis was the most commonly noted systemic disease. Cases with concurrent systemic inflammation had significantly greater ESR, often exceeding 100 mm/hour, and were more likely to be bilateral.

The authors conclude that, although there are pitfalls in interpreting data from a review of case reports from various authors spanning more than 50 years, an understanding of these trends in clinical characteristics may help ophthalmologists recognize the life-threatening systemic form of this disease.