Background: To determine the antibacterial activity of newer fluoroquinolones and compare their activity between ciprofloxacin-susceptible and resistant bacterial isolates from patients with keratitis and endophthalmitis . Materials and Methods: The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, levofloxacin, gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin was determined for 123 bacterial isolates, using E test . Among the 123 isolates, 68 were gram-positive ( Staphylococcus spp, Streptococcus spp, Corynebacterium spp, Bacillus spp.) and 55 were gram-negative ( Pseudomonas aeruginosa) . The bacterial isolates were divided into three groups: susceptible / intermediate/ resistant to ciprofloxacin. The MIC values for various fluoroquinolones were compared between the three groups and between gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. Results: For gram-positive isolates, median MICs of fourth generation fluoroquinolones were lower than second generation. The median MIC was lowest for gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin (0.094 mg/ml) in ciprofloxacin-susceptible isolates of gram-positive bacteria. For ciprofloxacin-susceptible gram-negative bacteria, the median MIC of ciprofloxacin (0.19 mg/ml) was significantly lower than ofloxacin, levofloxacin, gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin (1.5, 0.5, 0.5 and 2 mg/ml respectively). Ciprofloxacin-resistant isolates of gram-positive bacteria showed higher MIC of levofloxacin, moxifloxacin and gatifloxacin though they remained susceptible to them. None of the fluoroquinolones were effective against ciprofloxacin-resistant gram-negative bacteria. Overall, for gram-positive bacteria, median MICs of levofloxacin, moxifloxacin and gatifloxacin were below ciprofloxacin, the MIC of gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin was equal for gram-positive bacteria. Conclusions: Levofloxacin, gatifloxacin and moxifloxacin are statistically more effective against gram-positive bacteria, the latter two being equally effective. Ciprofloxacin remains the most effective fluoroquinolone against gram-negative bacteria.

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Aggressive posterior retinopathy of prematurity (formerly known as fulminate/type II/rush disease) occurs in zone 1 or posterior zone 2. Treatment involves extensive near confluent laser ablation of a large area of avascular retina. Anterior segment ischemia is a rare complication that can occur due to injury to the long posterior ciliary arteries in the horizontal meridians during aggressive posterior laser treatment. The outcome of this rare complication is very poor. This case describes a favorable outcome of intravitreal injection of bevacizumab (Avastin) in a case of anterior segment ischemia.

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Corneal transplantation remains a major treatment option for restoring sight among those suffering from corneal blindness. The number of corneal transplants done is far less than the actual requirement in India. This is largely due to the inadequate numbers of corneas collected. Medical students can be involved in the motivation of patients and relatives to pledge their eyes and to do grief counseling for donating eyes. The aim of the study was to assess the perception and willingness of 180 first-year medical students towards eye donation in Delhi. They were administered a pretested semi-structured questionnaire on eye donation. Data were analyzed using Epi-Info software package 6.04 version. The majority (99.4%) of students knew that eyes can be donated after death but only 41.1% knew that the ideal time of donation was within six hours of death. Most participants (87.2%) were willing to donate eyes. Nobility in the act of eye donation was the main motivational force for eye donation according to 85.5% of students. Perceived reasons for not pledging eyes by the people were: lack of awareness (32.7%), objection by family members (27.7%), unsuitability to donate because of health problem (17.7%) and the unacceptable idea to separate the eye from the body (15.5%). Mass media such as television, newspapers, magazines and posters were important sources of information on eye donation. Perceived reasons for not donating eyes need to be considered while creating awareness about eye donation in the community.

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Purpose: To determine the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of Acanthamoeba keratitis and also to determine the sensitivity and specificity of smears in the detection of Acanthamoeba . Materials and Methods: A retrospective review of all culture-positive cases of Acanthamoeba keratitis seen between October 1999 and August 2002 was performed. Corneal scrapes were subjected to culture and microscopy using standard protocols. Results: Out of 3183 consecutive patients with clinically diagnosed corneal ulcers evaluated, 33 (1.04%) were found to be due to Acanthamoeba . Twenty-four out of 33 (72.72%) were less than 51 years of age ( P < 0.001). All patients were from rural areas ( P < 0.001) and 26 (78.79%) of them were agricultural workers ( P = 0.031). All 33 had history of corneal injury ( P <0.001) and 28 (84.85%) patients had injury with mud ( P < 0.001). All 33 (100%) patients had previous medical treatment ( P =0.009) and 10 (30.3%) had used traditional eye medicines ( P =0.183). A clinical pattern of ring infiltrate was characteristic in 15 (45.45%) patients. The diameter of the corneal ulcer was more than 6mm in 27 (81.82%) eyes ( P <0.001). Twenty-six (78.79%) patients had visual acuity of perception of light on initial presentation ( P <0.001) and 24 (72.73%) had the same as their final visual outcome. The sensitivity of 10% potassium hydroxide (KOH) preparation was found to be higher ( P <0.001) in the detection of Acanthamoeba cysts. Conclusion: The incidence of Acanthamoeba keratitis amongst the corneal ulcer patients was 1% in this setting and it was mainly due to corneal injury by mud. The KOH preparation is a sensitive diagnostic tool for the detection of Acanthamoeba . Delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis and inappropriate antimicrobial therapy results in poor visual outcome.

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A 39-year-old Asian woman, with a known history of breast cancer, presented with a gradual onset of painless reduction in vision in both eyes. Examination revealed visual acuity of counting fingers in the right eye and light perception in the left. There were subretinal lesions in the posterior poles of both eyes and retinal detachment in the left eye. Later she developed left proptosis and restriction in left ocular movement, most likely to be caused by metastatic extraocular spread. She subsequently died from disseminated metastatic disease. Histopathological examination confirmed tumor cells infiltrating the choroids, retina and optic nerve in both eyes. The tumor cells were arranged in lobular fashion and stained positively with Periodic Acid Schiff, suggesting the primary to be lobular adenocarcinoma type. Choroidal metastatic disease is common but bilateral retinal and optic nerve involvement with extraocular spread from breast cancer is rare.

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To review the microbiological profile of ulcerative keratitis associated with contact lens (CL)-wear, 35 patients with culture-proven CL-associated microbial keratitis were studied between September 1999 and September 2002. Corneal scrapes and CL-care products were collected and were subjected to microbiological evaluation. Gram-negative bacilli alone were recovered from the corneal scrapes of all 35 (100%) patients, all 70 (100%) CL storage case wells and also from CL-care solution of six (17.14%) of the 35 patients. There was a significantly higher number of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (71.43%) isolated from eyes with CL-related keratitis than other bacterial isolates (28.57%) ( P <0.001). Microbial contamination of CL storage cases was a great risk for gram-negative bacterial infection among soft CL-wearers.

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Purpose: To evaluate and compare impression smear with the conventional mechanical corneal scraping by potassium hydroxide (KOH) method in the diagnosis of fungal keratitis. Materials and Methods: Fifty consecutive cases of clinically suspected fungal keratitis were included. Under topical anesthesia, impression smear was obtained from the lesion, followed by the conventional mechanical scraping and both were transferred to sterile glass slides. The slides were examined under direct microscopy with KOH 10% wet mount. Impression smear KOH was compared with the scraping KOH and culture. Results: The KOH smear was positive in 36 (72%) patients with impression smear technique and positive in 35 (70%) patients from corneal scrapings. Sensitivity of impression smear technique as compared to scraping was 97.14%, specificity 92.86%, positive predictive value 94.4%, negative predictive value 92.86%, false positive rate 5.56%, false negative rate 7.14% and accuracy was 94%. As compared to culture, the sensitivity was 100%, specificity 46.67%, positive predictive value 55.56%, negative predictive value 100%, false positive rate 53.33%, false negative rate 0% and accuracy was 68%. Conclusion: Impression smear KOH examination is comparable to conventional mechanical corneal scraping KOH examination in making a tentative diagnosis of fungal keratitis and can be accurately relied upon for initiating anti-fungal therapy.

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Background: Staphylococcus epidermidis , a commensal of the conjunctival sac has been incriminated as the commonest etiological agent of bacterial keratitis. However, the pathogenic potential of this commensal organism is not clearly known. Aim: To determine any phenotypic, molecular markers of S. epidermidis pathogenicity in bacterial keratitis. Materials and Methods: A total of 382 corneal ulcer isolates of S. epidermidis and 87 S. epidermidis isolates from healthy eyes (controls) were studied. Speciation, biotyping and antibiotic sensitivity testing were performed by conventional methods. Tube slime and adherence tests were carried out by recommended techniques. Plasmid analysis was conducted by a standard protocol. Statistical Analysis: Chi-square test was employed for calculations. Results: Out of 382 corneal ulcer isolates (Pathogens) 284 (74.3%) belonged to biotypes I and II. Slime was detected in 164 (42.9%) of 382 pathogens vs. 21 (24.1%) of 87 controls ( P <0.001). Sixty-five (39.6%) of 164 slime positive isolates were multidrug-resistant as compared to only 49 (22.4%) of 218 slime negative isolates ( P <0.001). A significantly higher number i.e., 73.1% (120/164) of slime-producers possessed a 21Kb plasmid in contrast to only 53.2% (116/218) of nonslime-producers ( P <0.001). Presence of this plasmid had a statistical correlation of low significance with multidrug resistance ( P =0.04). One hundred and seventy-two (45.0%) of 382 pathogens and 24 (27.6%) of the 87 controls were adherent to artificial surfaces ( P =0.003) and the majority of the adherent organisms (99/172, 57.6%) were slime producers ( P <0.001). Conclusions: Slime was associated with multidrug resistance in corneal ulcer isolates of S. epidermidis . The 21Kb plasmid could determine virulence as it was responsible for slime production and adherence.

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Purpose: To analyze the outcome of keratoplasty performed using Kalevar-Majumdar (K-M) media, a new synthetic viscous medium for preservation of the cornea. Materials and Methods: The K-M media-preserved donor eye balls were kept in a bottle in a refrigerator at 4° C till the corneas were used. Forty-eight consecutive keratoplasty cases of pseudophakic bullous keratopathy with vision less than counting fingers at one meter and operated by a single surgeon have been analyzed. Corneal donor button of 7.5 mm was used on the 7.0 mm recipient bed in all cases. Surgery was done with a standard technique. All the cases were examined daily for the first week and at the end of one month for graft clarity, epithelial defect and stromal edema. Results: The K-M media-preserved corneal grafts remained clear at the end of the first week in 95.8% (46 of 48) cases and at the end of one month in 93.7% (45 of 48) cases. Donor epithelial haze cleared in 24h in all cases. The stromal edema got cleared in the majority (91.7%, 44 of 48) within 24h. Epithelial defect was seen in only 10.4% (five cases). There was no primary graft failure. Conclusion: K-M medium, a new viscous, synthetic corneal preservation medium, is a safe (no primary donor failure) alternative to conventional liquid corneal preservation media. K-M media-preserved eyes appear to have better preserved corneal epithelium with faster achievement of graft clarity postoperatively.

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We report two siblings with the rare entity of familial calcific band-shaped keratopathy (BSK). Detailed ophthalmic and systemic investigations failed to reveal any underlying causative pathology. Topical disodium ethylenediamine-tetraacetate (EDTA) was applied for 30 min to all four eyes. In addition the right eye of the younger sibling required a superficial keratectomy. An improvement in corneal clarity was seen in the immediate postoperative period in both siblings. Histopathology of the keratectomy specimen revealed linear extracellular sub-epithelial granular calcium deposits. However, an early recurrence was noted in all four eyes at four weeks postoperatively. We report the second instance in the English literature of this entity. Band-shaped keratopathy presenting without an obvious etiology merits a complete systemic and ophthalmic workup. Patients with familial idiopathic BSK could be cases with poor prognosis for treatment with EDTA due to an early recurrence of the disease.

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Purpose: To examine the hypothesis that initial smear examination results have a significant bearing on the management and outcome of suspected microbial keratitis. Materials and Methods: One hundred and seventy consecutive patients with suspected microbial keratitis were included in a prospective nonrandomized comparative study and their detailed clinical and microbiological data (smears and cultures of corneal scrapings) were captured on a predesigned corneal ulcer database. Patients were divided into two groups: Group 1 included 68 patients with corneal scrapings negative in smears while Group 2 included 102 patients with corneal scrapings positive in smears. The two groups were compared for their clinico-microbiological profile, management and clinical outcome. The outcome was noted at three months. Fisher's exact test was applied for statistical analysis. Results: Cultures were sterile in 57.3% of patients in Group 1 compared to 17.6% in Group 2. Scrapings that grew S. pneumoniae , gram-negative organisms, fungi and Acanthamoeba were more often positive in smears (18.6%, 11.8%, 19.6% and 2.9% respectively). While data on duration of prior treatment was not available, prior medication made no significant difference to smear results. More (79.3%) patients of Group 1 had small infiltrate size (< 25 mm[[2]]) compared to Group 2 (49%). Significantly more patients in Group 2 than in Group 1 were treated with antifungals (5.4% vs. 41%) and fortified antibiotic combination (12.7% vs. 27%). Broad-spectrum antibiotic (ciprofloxacin) was started more often in Group 1 than Group 2 (60% vs. 15% respectively). The corneal infiltrate resolved in 33.3% of cases in Group 2, which was significantly more than in Group 1 (33.3% and 7.3% respectively). Conclusions: Initial smear examination helps in instituting specific therapy thereby improving the outcome in cases of microbial keratitis. Positive smears indicate greater severity of disease and prior medication may not be a significant cause of smear negativity.

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Infection of a self-sealing tunnel incision is a rare but vision-threatening complication of cataract surgery. We describe two cases of side port infection following an uneventful phacoemulsification. Nocardia was isolated in one case. Both the cases were worsening on medical treatment and were successfully treated by therapeutic keratoplasty.

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Bilateral pseudo-dendritic keratitis in infancy can be due to tyrosinemia, a rare metabolic disorder. Ocular involvement may be the earliest presenting manifestation of this disease. Early diagnosis is essential because dietary modifications can result in complete reversal of the manifestations of this disorder. This disease must be suspected in all cases of non-responsive dendritic keratitis in the pediatric age group, especially if it is associated with cutaneous lesions such as patmoplantar keratosis. Serum tyrosine levels must be done in these cases.

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Bilateral keratitis usually occurs in predisposed individuals such as contact lens wearers, those suffering from malnutrition and immunodeficiency or patients undergoing bilateral refractive corneal surgery. We report a 30-year-old man without any obvious predisposing factors who presented with complaints of pain and decreased vision in both eyes. Examination revealed corneal ulcers in both eyes, which on microbiological culture grew Pseudomonas aeruginosa . The patient underwent a therapeutic keratoplasty in the right eye while the left eye was managed medically. Bilateral Pseudomonas keratitis can develop in the absence of any obvious predisposing factors.

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Endogenous aspergillosis is a rare occurrence. Endogenous Aspergillus endophthalmitis is a rare but devastating infection usually associated with disseminated aspergillosis or with intravenous drug abuse. We report a case of an isolated Aspergillus iris granuloma in a young immunocompetent male patient with review of the literature.

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Aim: To determine the cellular profile and cytokine levels in the tear fluid of fungal keratitis patients. Materials and Methods: Tear samples were collected from six fungal keratitis patients (Group I) from active stages of the disease up to resolution. Tears collected from the following served as controls: uninfected fellow eye (Group II A) of Group I, patients undergoing cataract surgery (Group II B) and acute conjunctivitis (Group II C). The cellular profile was evaluated. Interleukines (IL-6, IL-8 and IL-1β) were estimated using sandwich enzyme immunoassay. Statistical analysis was carried out using nonparametric two-sample median test. Results: Polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) were the predominant infiltrating cells in Group I. During the initial stages of fungal infection, levels of IL-6 and IL-8 in the tear samples were found to be significantly increased when compared with Group II A ( P = 0.019 for IL-6, P < 0.001 for IL-8). This was also true for IL -8 ( P = 0.008) levels in Group I and Group II B). While IL-6 levels decreased significantly towards healing, IL-8 remained slightly elevated even after healing. These cytokines were at the base level in Group II A. Lymphocytes and PMN were present in equal proportions in Group II C, which showed elevated levels of cytokines but not to the extent of Group I. Conclusion: This horizontal study indicates that understanding the nature of the inflammatory response in the tears of fungal keratitis patients is of considerable interest and warrants further investigations.

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We present three cases of persistent corneal edema secondary to presumed dead adult filarial worms lying in the anterior chamber with their attachment to the endothelium. Two of them were initially diagnosed as descemet's fold with corneal edema. Two patients underwent penetrating keratoplasty and in one case, surgical removal was partly possible with clearing of cornea.

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We report a case of traumatic globe rupture following blunt trauma in the left eye of a 20-year-old male who had undergone deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty for keratonus. Prolapse of both, the crystalline lens and the vitreous was present through the inferior 180º donor host junction. After repositioning, anterior vitrectomy and repair of graft host junction, the graft regained clarity in eight weeks and there was good visual recovery.

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