The ocular findings of children with acute luekemia in Baskent University hospital for the last fifteen years

Eye disease in the acute leukemia can be seen due to the leukemic infiltration as well as can be secondary to the disease and treatment. In recent years, life expectancy of the patients has increased with the use of modern therapies. As a result, eye findings have been much more reported. In the studies investigating the ocular findings of acute leukemias, the incidence of ocular involvement and the effect on prognosis of leukemia varies. In this study, we targeted to investigate the incidence of ocular findings and the effect on prognosis of acute leukemias. 120 cases who were diagnosed with acute leukemia at Pediatric Hematology department of Baskent University Hospital between 1995-2010 years were reviewed. In our hospital, all patients diagnosed with acute leukemia are examined from diagnosis by ophthalmology department by using direct and indirect ophthalmoscope. The mean age at diagnosis of patients with acute leukemia 6.6±4.5 (range, 1 month-18 years) and there were 79 male (65%), 41 female (35%) patients. 83 patients (69.2%) were diagnosed as ALL, 35 (29.1%) of them as AML, 2 patients (1.7%) as mixed leukemia. In 41 (34.2%) patients, 58 eye findings were detected. 28 of the patients with eye findings had ALL, 13 of them had AML and the mean age of these patients was 7.9±4.5 (range: 1 month-18 years). The eye findings were seen more frequently at the older age. Eye findings were primary in the 12 cases and secondary to the disease in 46 of them. Four patients had orbital, 2 had retinal, 2 had cranial nerve and 2 had choroid lesions. In one patient the optic disc and in another one the conjunctiva were affected. Frequently seen secondary ocular findings were intraretinal hemorrhage in 9 patients, conjunctival hemorrhage in 9, conjunctivitis in 5, secondary cranial nerve findings in 5 and papilledema in 4 patients. vi Eye findings had no correlation with gender, hematological parameters, the type of leukemia, the frequency of relapse and survival. To determine especially the effect on prognosis, multi-center studies with more patients are needed.