SynthesisEye (London, England)2026
Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease frequency around the globe: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Eye (London, England), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
14 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BACKGROUND/
objectivesVogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease has been historically associated with specific ethnic groups, suggesting an underlying susceptibility. Prior to this study, no meta-analysis had synthesized the global epidemiology of VKH, and therefore, information on its geographic distribution remained incomplete. The present study aims to determine the global distribution of VKH disease diagnosis in individuals presenting with uveitis.
methodsA systematic review and meta-analysis of quantitative studies published between 2001 and 2025 in PubMed, SciELO, and LILACS was conducted following PRISMA-P guidelines. Case reports were excluded. Risk of bias was assessed using the Murad assessment tool for case series. A random-effects model was used to pool frequency estimates with 95% confidence intervals and prediction intervals.
resultsOf 7153 articles identified, 258 studies were analyzed, spanning six continents and 44 countries. The estimated frequency of VKH among uveitis cases was 5.11% (CI:4.31-5.90%; PI: 0.00-15.18%) overall, with predominance of females. When subgrouped into pediatric and adult populations, the estimated frequency was 2.43% (CI:1.83-3.02%; PI: 0.00-6.38%) and 6.15% (CI:4.06-8.24%; PI: 0.00-19.77%), respectively. Frequencies varied across regions, with higher rates reported in Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Africa, and lower rates in North America, Europe, and Oceania. Regarding the quality evaluation, most studies were considered as medium-high quality (162/169, 96%).
conclusionThis systematic review and meta-analysis support the existence of geographical differences in VKH disease expression and the need for additional epidemiological research, particularly in underrepresented regions. These findings should be interpreted in the context of methodological heterogeneity and potential publication and geographic bias.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.