Validation of international criteria for the diagnosis of ocular sarcoidosis proposed by the first international workshop on ocular sarcoidosis.

PURPOSE: To validate the international criteria for the diagnosis of ocular sarcoidosis as proposed by the First International Workshop on Ocular Sarcoidosis (FIWOS).

METHODS: A retrospective case-control study examined 370 consecutive uveitis patients at Tokyo Medical and Dental University Hospital. The study group consisted of 50 patients with biopsy-proven sarcoidosis and 320 control patients with other uveitis entities. Predictive values [sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV)] were calculated for seven clinical signs, five laboratory tests, and the diagnostic criteria.

RESULTS: With the exception of the liver enzyme tests, there was a significantly higher incidence of positive results for all clinical signs and laboratory tests in the biopsy-proven sarcoidosis patients than in the control uveitis patients. Although variability was noted in the predictive values of the seven clinical signs and five laboratory tests, the sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV of the FIWOS criteria, which were based on the combined results of the clinical signs and laboratory tests, were 1.000, 0.956, 0.781, and 1.000, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: The FIWOS criteria have high predictive values for diagnosing ocular sarcoidosis. To further confirm these findings, an international prospective multicenter study should be undertaken in the future.