This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

Treatment of bacterial keratitis

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

The patient should be referred the same day for emergency ophthalmological management.

Cultures and scrapings from the infected area should be obtained (by a suitably experienced clinician) before antibiotic therapy is commenced. In this way pathogenic organisms and their sensitivity may be determined.

Intensive topical antibiotics (e.g. chloramphenicol drops, topical fluoroquinolones), are given in combination with a mydriatic e.g. atropine.

In severe keratitis fortified ophthalmic combination solutions may be used e.g. ticarcillin + gentamicin + vancomycin (1).

Low dose steroids may be administered but should be tapered off slowly (2)

Oral antibiotics are usually not indicated except in cases of corneal perforation or gonococcal infection

Reference:

  1. J Fr Ophtalmol. 2007 Apr;30(4):423-30.
  2. Ophthalmologe. 2007 Jan;104(1):15-20.

Create an account to add page annotations

Add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation, such as a web address or phone number. This information will always be displayed when you visit this page

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.