Two cases of fungal keratitis caused by Metarhizium anisopliae

We present two cases of keratitis due to Metarhizium anisopliae in geographically separated areas of the United States. The isolates were microscopically similar but morphologically different and were identified by ribosomal DNA sequencing. Both isolates had low minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values to caspofungin and micafungin, but high MIC values to amphotericin B. The morphologic and antifungal susceptibility differences between the two isolates indicate possible polyphylogeny of the group. Keywords: Metarhizium, Fungal keratitis, Keratomycosis, Antifungal susceptibilit

Counselling for people with sight loss in the UK: The need for provision and the need for evidence

This is an open access article - Copyright @ 2010 BMJ Publishing Group.The Department of Ophthalmology at UCSF is supported by a core grant from the National Eye Institute, EY02162, That Man May See and the South Asia Research Fund. In addition, this work was supported in part by a grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation to UCSF to fund Clinical Research Fellow Allison Loh

Intrastromal antifungal injection as a successful modality of treatment for fungal keratitis: a case series

Fungal keratitis is a dreaded occurrence in the cornea and anterior segment given the difficulty in treating the disease. Hereby reporting 5 cases of fungal keratitis causes by virulent organisms such as Aspergillus versicolor, Aspergillus fumigatus, Phialophora sp, and Fusarium sp. A retrospective interventional case series of 5 fungal keratitis which were successfully treated by intrastromal antifungal injection performed by a single surgeon from March 2017 till April 2018. The fungal keratitis stromal abscess sizes range from largest of 3mm x 2mm to smallest of 1mmx 1mm, mostly located paracentral and one case was noted to have hypopyon measuring about 1mm. On the first week of treatment, patients noted to exhibit poor response to topical antifungal. Hence, intrastromal amphotericin B injection 5mcg/0.1ml about 0.1ml administered into the affected eye ranging from once to 3 times in all patients except for one patient; who is post-operative 1 year penetrating keratoplasty infected with Phialophora keratitis is given intrastromal amphotericin B injection 5mcg/0.1ml about 0.1ml for 3 times and intrastromal voriconazole injection 50mcg/0.1ml about 0.1ml for 3 times. Within next four weeks, all the 5 cases of fungal keratitis became completely quiet with healed epithelial defect and corneal scarring. In summary, the intrastromal antifungal injection can constitute a good modality for the treatment of recalcitrant cases of fungal keratitis, revealing highly potent antifungal effects as the medication is administrated directly to the site of keratitis, promises shorter recovery period, and early intrastromal antifungal injection also leads to quicker healing with good vision prognosis

Fungal keratitis

Sonal S TuliUniversity of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA  Clinical question: What is the most appropriate management of fungal keratitis?Results: Traditionally, topical Natamycin is the most commonly used medication for filamentous fungi while Amphotericin B is most commonly used for yeast. Voriconazole is rapidly becoming the drug of choice for all fungal keratitis because of its wide spectrum of coverage and increased penetration into the cornea.Implementation: Repeated debridement of the ulcer is recommended for the penetration of topical medications. While small, peripheral ulcers may be treated in the community, larger or central ulcers, especially if associated with signs suggestive of anterior chamber penetration should be referred to a tertiary center. Prolonged therapy for approximately four weeks is usually necessary.Keywords: fungal keratitis, keratomycosis, antifungal medications, debridemen

Fungal keratitis after descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty

This is a case report discussing the case of a patient with fungal infection after undergoing a descemet stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK). The pathogenesis and possible treatment options of fungal keratitis are discussed. Also, the precautions that should be taken in order to prevent fungal keratitis in patients undergoing DSAEK are referred to.

A Rare Devastating Complication of Lasik: Bilateral Fungal Keratitis

Purpose. To report an unusual case of severe bilateral fungal keratitis following laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK). Method. A 48-year-old man developed bilateral diffuse corneal infiltration two weeks after LASIK. The corneal scrapings revealed fungal filaments but cultures were negative. Results. The corneal ulceration was improved on the left eye whereas spontaneous perforation occurred and finally evisceration was needed on the right eye despite topical and systemic antifungal treatment. Conclusions. Fungal keratitis, especially with bilateral involvement, is a very rare and serious complication of LASIK surgery. Clinical suspicion is crucial because most of fungal keratitis are misdiagnosed as bacterial keratitis and can lead serious visual results, even eye loss

Effectiveness of Voriconazole in Treating Fungal Keratitis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Antifungal intervention fails in approximately half of fungal keratitis patients, demonstrating its limitations. Voriconazole use for fungal keratitis has raised new interest because of its broad spectrum and good ocular penetration. However, its effectiveness has not been systematically evaluated. Here we try to clarify the benefits of voriconazole in fungal keratitis cases. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing vorico­nazole to placebo or other antifungal medications for fungal keratitis were searched in several databases, in­cluding PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, ClinicalTrials, and WHO-ICTRP. The primary outcome that analyzed was best spectacle-corrected vision acuity (BSCVA). The secondary outcomes were treatment success, corneal perforation or need for therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty (TPK). From 621 records, nine studies were se­lected for analysis. The results were as follows: As an initial therapy, topical natamycin outperformed vori­conazole in BSCVA (mean difference = 0.14; 95% CI 0.02 to 0.26; P =.03). Voriconazole also has a greater risk of corneal perforation or TPK than natamycin (RR=1.69; 95% CI 1.11 to 2.58; P=.02). As an adjuvant, there is no significant difference found in BSCVA, treatment success, event of corneal perforation, or need for TPK between voriconazole and the other antifungal agents (itraconazole, ketoconazole, amphotericin B, natamy­cin, and placebo). This study shows that voriconazole is less superior than natamycin in treating early infec­tions of fungal keratitis. More RCTs with larger samples are needed to evaluate voriconazole's adjuvant efficacy

Successful topical application of caspofungin in the treatment of fungal keratitis refractory to voriconazole

Fungal keratitis is an important ophthalmic problem because it leads to corneal blindness and sometimes to loss of the eye.1,2 There is no agreed protocol for the treatment of suspected fungal keratitis. Topical and oral voriconazole have now been reported to be effective.3 However, some cases do not respond to this treatment. New antifungal agents such as caspofungin acetate, 0.5%, are promising alternative

Village-Integrated Eye Worker trial (VIEW): rationale and design of a cluster-randomised trial to prevent corneal ulcers in resource-limited settings.

IntroductionCorneal opacity is a leading cause of blindness worldwide. In resource-limited settings, untreated traumatic corneal abrasions may result in infection and ultimately, opacity. Although antimicrobial treatment of corneal ulcers may successfully cure infections, the scarring that accompanies the resolution of infection can still result in visual impairment. Prevention may be the optimal approach for reducing corneal blindness. Studies have employed community health workers to provide prompt administration of antimicrobials after corneal abrasions to prevent infections, but these studies were not designed to determine the effectiveness of such a programme.Methods and analysisThe Village-Integrated Eye Worker trial (VIEW) is a cluster-randomised trial designed to assess the effectiveness of a community health worker intervention to prevent corneal ulcers. Twenty-four Village Development Committees (VDCs) in Nepal were randomised to receive a corneal ulcer prevention programme or to no intervention. Female Community Health Volunteers (FCHVs) in intervention VDCs are trained to diagnose corneal abrasions, provide antimicrobials and to refer participants when needed. An annual census is conducted over 3 years in all study VDCs to assess the incidence of corneal ulceration via corneal photography (primary outcome). Masked outcome assessors grade corneal photographs to determine the presence or absence of incident corneal opacities. The primary analysis is negative binomial regression to compare the incidence of corneal ulceration by study arm.Ethics and disseminationThe University of California San Francisco Committee on Human Research, Nepal Netra Jyoti Sangh and the Nepal Health Research Council have given ethical approval for the trial. The results of this trial will be presented at local and international meetings and submitted to peer-reviewed journals for publication.Trial registration numberNCT01969786; Pre-results