The Influence of Race and Sex on the Side Effect Profile of Methotrexate in the Treatment of Uveitis

ABSTRACT

Purpose: To detect any correlation between race and sex and the side effects of methotrexate in uveitis treatment.

Methods: Retrospective review of patients seen at Northwestern Memorial Hospital between August 2012 and September 2014 with a history of MTX treatment for uveitis. Demographic, treatment, and side-effect data were collected for each patient.

Results: Ninety-seven patients were included (25 males, 72 females). Twenty-eight patients reported African American race, 60 reported Caucasian race, and the remaining 9 reported Asian, Hispanic, or Arabic ethnicity. Males experienced more gastrointestinal upset than females (24% versus 13.8%). Caucasians had more gastrointestinal complaints (20% versus 8%) while African Americans developed more hair loss (14% versus 6.6%), although the numbers were too small to detect a statistical difference.

Conclusion: While our sample was small, these findings suggest racial and gender disparities in the side effects experienced by patients treated with methotrexate. This information may be useful to clinicians counseling patients on risk profile.

Keywords:

• Alopecia
• hair loss
• methotrexate
• side effects
• uveitis

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.