Involvement of Fusarium spp. in fungal keratitis

Abstract

Members of the filamentous fungal genus Fusarium are among the agents most frequently causing keratomycosis in humans. Fusarium keratitis is most common among agricultural workers in geographical regions with hot, humid, tropical or semi-tropical climates, but can occur more rarely in countries with temperate climates, such as Hungary. Keratitis is usually treated with a topical antifungal agent, sometimes in combination with sub-conjunctival injections and/or antimycotic agents, but therapeutic keratoplasty may be needed for patients whose corneal infection does not resolve. Early and accurate diagnosis, coupled with appropriate antifungal therapy, is crucial for improving the chances of complete recovery.

Fusarium Infections in Immunocompromised Patients

“…Less frequently, the infection may occur as a result of skin breakdown, such as burns and wounds (74), or the presence of foreign bodies, such as keratitis in contact lens wearers (23), which at times causes outbreaks of fusarial keratitis (16). Peritonitis in patients receiving continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis has also been described (34,52,92).…”

“…Keratitis is usually treated with topical antifungal agents, and natamycin is the drug of choice (23). More recently, successful treatment with topical and oral voriconazole has been reported (13).…”

“…Other infecting species included Fusarium dimerum, Fusarium proliferatum, Fusarium chlamidosporum, Fusarium sacchari, Fusarium nygamai, Fusarium napiforme, Fusarium antophilum, and Fusarium vasinfectum. Fusarium solani is also the most frequent pathogen in fusarial keratitis (23) and, with F. oxysporum, accounts for most cases of onychomycosis caused by Fusarium species (12,39,73).…”

Activities of E1210 and Comparator Agents Tested by CLSI and EUCAST Broth Microdilution Methods against Fusarium and Scedosporium Species Identified Using Molecular Methods

“…F. solani is also the most common species in fusarial keratitis (5,9,24,25). Molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that the more commonly reported fusarial pathogens represent species complexes and cannot be identified to the species level by traditional morphological methods alone (21,24,25,38).…”

Queratitis Micótica: identificación de especies en Valparaíso

“…La queratitis micótica representa una de las formas de queratitis más difíciles en su diagósitco y tratamiento, constituyendo un problema oftalmológico importante que puede llevar incluso a la pérdida de la visión (5,6) Lesiones traumáticas con ramas, espinas u otros elementos de orígen vegetal no sólo pueden provocar úlceras o erosiones corneales, sino también contaminación con propágulos fúngicos que pueden repro-ducirse y generar una importante reacción inflamatoria y necrosis (7,8). Estos datos coinciden con nuestro estudio, donde la mayor parte de los pacientes (8/10) presentaron lesiones con ramas o espinas previo a la infección fúngica.…”