Corneal and tear film immunology in anterior uveitis: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Anterior uveitis is an intraocular inflammatory condition that can lead to vision impairment without appropriate and timely treatment. Determining its aetiology can be difficult due to its heterogeneous clinical presentations, which challenges effective treatment. The primary aim of this systematic review is to comprehensively identify and synthesise evidence on the immunological features of anterior uveitis in the human cornea and tear film, as a foundation for considering the utility of such features as biomarkers for disease classification, prognosis and monitoring treatment responsiveness. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Comprehensive electronic database searches will be performed in Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid Embase and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) without date restrictions. Two independent review authors will screen retrieved titles and abstracts in Covidence relative to predefined study eligibility criteria. Studies judged eligible or potentially eligible for inclusion will undergo full-text review using a similar method. Disagreements will be resolved by consensus. For each included study, risk of bias will be assessed using validated tools appropriate to the study design. Where sufficient and appropriate data are available, meta-analyses will be performed. For outcomes where a meta-analysis is not possible, a narrative synthesis will be provided. This review will be reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 statement. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval is not applicable for this review as no original data will be collected. The results of this review are expected to be disseminated through a peer-reviewed publication and/or scientific conference presentations. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD420261339682.