Purpose: To determine the incidence of autoimmune disease in Japanese patients with ocular adnexal lymphoid proliferations.
Design: Case series study.
Methods: The authors investigated the incidence of autoimmune disease in 88 patients with primary ocular adnexal lymphoid proliferations. Southern blot analysis was used to determine the presence of B-cell clonality in reactive lymphoid hyperplasia (RLH) associated with autoimmune disease.
Results: Histopathologic analysis indicated that 15 (17%) patients had RLH, 62 (70%) patients had mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma (MALToma), and 11 (13%) patients had primary lymphomas. The incidence of autoimmune disease was seven (47%) of 15 patients with RLH, two (3%) of 62 patients with MALToma, and zero (0%) of 11 patients with primary lymphoma. B-cell clonality was detected in one (14%) of seven RLH patients with autoimmune disease.
Conclusions: Ocular adnexal RLH with or without B-cell clonality is highly associated with autoimmune disease.