The effectiveness of adalimumab treatment for non-infectious uveitis

Uveitis, which is a major cause of blindness worldwide, is defined as intraocular inflammation that affects the iris, ciliary body, vitreous, retina and choroid. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) is a key cytokine involved in the pathogenesis of many inflammatory diseases including uveitis. Corticosteroids and immunosuppressive agents are the conventional therapy to treat non-infectious uveitis. In cases that are resistant to these therapies, anti-TNF agents are added. An anti-TNF-α agent, adalimumab, was recently approved for the treatment of refractory non-infectious uveitis. In this review, we provide an introduction to uveitis and summarize the effectiveness and safety of adalimumab in the treatment of non-infectious uveitis.