The persistently elevated number of reported cases supports the need to understand the risk factors and environmental exposures associated with Acanthamoeba keratitis. Further prevention efforts are needed to reduce the number of cases occurring among contact lens wearers.
The most common risk factor for AK continues to be contact lens wear. AK requires prolonged and intense treatment, although good final visual acuity can be achieved. Potentially viable Acanthamoeba cysts can still persist in a noninflamed cornea after extensive medical therapy, supporting the practice that corneal transplantation after presumably resolved cases of AK should be followed with vigilance to detect the earliest signs of recurrent disease.
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