Occurrence of vernal keratoconjunctivitis in children infected with human immunodeficiency virus

PURPOSE: To study the occurrence of vernal keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) as an ocular manifestation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in pediatric patients. METHODS: A retrospective study was done on the observations of cases of HIV-positive children. All seropositive patients from the Anti-Retroviral Therapy clinic were referred to the department of ophthalmology for evaluation. Retrospective correlation of CD4 count with active cases of VKC was done. All patients underwent a comprehensive ophthalmic evaluation including visual acuity, slit lamp and dilated fundus examination. RESULTS: A total of 72 children were included, 70 males and 2 females. Of these, 63 (87.5%) had VKC, three (4.2%) had cataract, two (2.8%) had cytomegalovirus retinitis retinitis, and four (5.5%) had no ophthalmic findings. CONCLUSION: There is a an evident association of HIV, VKC cases, and reduced CD4 count. More research is required on this topic.