"Therapeutic Penetrating Keratoplasty: A Retrospective Review".

PURPOSE: To report the indications, outcomes, and complications of therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty (Th PK) in patients with corneal perforation and/or nonhealing corneal ulceration. METHODS: A retrospective review was conducted of 51 eyes of 51 patients undergoing Th PK between January 1, 2006 and April 15, 2016. Data collected included patient demographics, visual acuity (VA), size of the corneal infiltrate and epithelial defect, degree of corneal thinning/perforation, microbiological results, surgical details, and postoperative complications. RESULTS: The average age at presentation was 56.0 years (range 6-92 years), and most of the patients were females (n=31, 60.8%). Th PK was performed for corneal perforation in 28 eyes (54.9% of cases), nonhealing corneal ulcer in 16 eyes (31.4% of cases), and imminent risk of corneal perforation in 7 eyes (13.7% of cases). Infection was the most common reason for performing a Th PK and was present in 92.3% (47/51) of all cases. Of the infectious cases, the most common etiologies were bacterial (44.7%, 21/47) and fungal (31.9%, 15/47). The most common identifiable risk factor for undergoing a Th PK was a history of contact lens wear, which was seen in 32.7% of patients. Initial anatomic success was achieved in all patients after performing Th PK. Most patients (33/51; 64.7%) had clear grafts at their last follow-up examination. There was an improvement in VA in 70.2% (33/47, where data were available) of the patients at the final postoperative visit compared with the preoperative visit. Average best postoperative VA (1.14±0.88 logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution [LogMAR]; 20/276) was significantly better than the presenting (1.98±0.68 LogMAR; 20/1910) and preoperative (2.18±0.55 LogMAR; 20/3,027) visual acuities (P<0.0001). The most common complication after Th PK was cataract, which was present in 81.8% (27/33) of phakic eyes in which lens status could be assessed, followed by graft failure (47.1%; 24/51), and secondary glaucoma (45.1%; 23/51). Five eyes developed infection in the therapeutic graft, four eyes had persistent corneal epithelial defect at their last follow-up visit, and two eyes underwent evisceration. CONCLUSIONS: Therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty achieves anatomic success and it is a useful procedure for restoring a stable cornea in cases in which infection fails to heal or when the cornea perforates. Furthermore, Th PK achieves corneal clarity and improves vision in most patients.

Outcomes of Wound Dehiscence Post-Penetrating Keratoplasty.

PURPOSE: Penetrating keratoplasties (PKs) carry a lifetime risk of developing wound dehiscence, which can lead to severe consequences to vision. To better understand the risk, we analyzed the characteristics and outcomes of a series of patients with wound dehiscence post-PK. METHODS: Data were collected retrospectively on 31 eyes from 30 patients with a history of wound dehiscence repair post-PK between January 1, 2009, and April 30, 2014, and followed up at the Cornea Service at Wills Eye Hospital. Only patients who had surgical repair of an open wound dehiscence were included, excluding those with wound slippage but no aqueous leak. RESULTS: The mean age at wound dehiscence was 56 years with a mean time from PK to dehiscence of 9.8 years. Among the 31 eyes, 26 (26/31, 84%) had trauma-induced dehiscence, while 5 had unknown causations or no reported trauma. The mean size of dehiscence was 153 ± 66 degrees. Visual outcomes ranged from 20/50 to no light perception, with a majority between 20/100 and hand motion (18/30, 60%). Twenty eyes (20/26, 76%) lost their lens at dehiscence. All 10 phakic eyes lost their lenses. Five patients retained their lens implants and had a better mean visual outcome (average = 20/400) than the 10 patients who lost their implants (average = 20/800) (1 lens status was unknown postdehiscence). CONCLUSIONS: Wound dehiscence is a lifelong risk after PK regardless of the age, indication for corneal transplant, and time since transplant. A better visual outcome was associated with retained pseudophakia and clear corneas.

Seasonal, geographic, and antimicrobial resistance patterns in microbial keratitis: 4-year experience in eastern Pennsylvania.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to review the demographics, causative organisms, seasonal and geographic variation, and antimicrobial resistance patterns of microbial keratitis at our institution over a 4-year period. METHODS: Electronic medical records of all patients with microbial keratitis who underwent corneal culturing at a single institution in eastern Pennsylvania between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2012 were reviewed. RESULTS: A total of 311 patients representing 323 instances of infectious keratitis were analyzed. The most frequently implicated organisms in contact lens-related infections were Pseudomonas aeruginosa for bacteria and Fusarium species for fungus, compared with Staphylococcus aureus and Candida species in non-contact lens-associated bacterial infections. Bacterial keratitis occurred most frequently in spring and least frequently in winter (P = 0.024). Patients who live in large fringe metro (suburban) areas accounted for the highest proportion of infectious keratitis cases. P. aeruginosa and methicillin-sensitive S. aureus isolates were highly susceptible to fluoroquinolones, whereas 32% of coagulase-negative staphylococcus isolates tested were resistant to moxifloxacin and gatifloxacin, and all methicillin-resistant S. aureus organisms tested were resistant to these 2 fluoroquinolones. No organisms tested were resistant to tobramycin, gentamicin, or vancomycin. No fungal infections tested were resistant to voriconazole. CONCLUSIONS: Most infectious keratitis occurred in nonwinter months and in patients from suburban counties. Although fluoroquinolones were effective against the most common bacteria, staphylococcal species exhibited a high rate of resistance, representing a therapeutic challenge given the increasing use of fluoroquinolones as first-line monotherapy. No organisms tested were resistant to tobramycin, gentamicin, vancomycin, or voriconazole.