Introduction
Vogt Koyanagi Harada disease (VKH) is not only an autoimmune vision-threatening disease that is frequently characterized by bilateral granulomatous panuveitis, but also a multisystemic inflammatory disorder which is commonly accompanied by neurological, auditory, and integumentary symptoms, such as headache, tinnitus, deafness, alopecia and so on. Although the etiology and pathogenesis of VKH are unknown, considerable progress over the last few decades has been made on the subject. Many hypotheses have been reported, most of which were genetic predisposition and viral infections. It is now widely accepted that virus may trigger the autoimmune response to melanin through a mechanism of molecular mimicry in VKH disease. When summing up the studies reviewed, various infective triggers such as Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and cytomegalovirus (CMV) have been reported to be involved in the start of VKH disease1.
With the emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative pathogen of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, it has been reported that the COVID-19 is associated with ocular signs, most of which were conjunctivitis, retinal vein occlusion and optic neuritis2,3. However, it is worth noting that the case of VKH disease associated with SARS-CoV-2 was rare and the specific association is still unclear. Thus, we report a case of bilateral panuveitis resembling VKH disease following SARS-CoV-2 infection, and review current pertinent literature to analyse some potential interactions between SARS-CoV-2 and VKH disease.