Abstract
Both eyes of patients undergoing cataract surgery were treated with an ointment preparation containing either trimethoprim 5 mg/g and polymyxin B sulphate 10,000 units/g, or chloramphenicol 1%. The antibiotic preparations were administered four times daily on the day prior to surgery, once in the morning prior to surgery and twice daily for fourteen days postoperatively. Cultures from conjunctivae and lid margins were taken prior to treatment, pre-operatively and post-operatively on selected days including the fourteenth post-operative day.
The effect of the antibiotics on conjunctival and lid margin flora was determined by enumerating patients with positive cultures prior to treatment which were eradicated following treatment and patients with organisms which were cultured de novo in spite of antibiotic treatment.
There was no significant change in the number of patients with organisms isolated from conjunctivae and lid margins (p>0.1 in each case, Sign test) over the sixteen day study period with either treatment. Additionally, when the effect of the two preparations on the number of patients with organisms obtained from conjunctivae and lid margins was compared, there was no significant difference between them (p>0.1 conjunctival cultures, p>0.1 lid margin cultures, Fisher's Exact probability test).
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
References
Genée E, Schlechtweg C, Bauerreiss P, Gibson JR . Trimethoprim-polymyxin eye drops versus neomycin-polymyxin-gramicidin eye drops in the treatment of presumptive bacterial conjunctivitis — a double-blind study. Ophthalmologica 1982; 184: 92–6.
van Rensburg SFJ, Gibson JR, Harvey SG, Burke CA . Trimethoprim-polymyxin ophthalmic solution versus chloramphenicol ophthalmic solution in the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis. Pharmatherapeutica 1982; 3: 274–7.
Gibson JR . Trimethoprim-polymyxin B ophthalmic solution in the treatment of presumptive bacterial conjunctivitis — a multicentre trial of its efficacy versus neomycin-polymyxin B — gramicidin and chloramphenicol ophthalmic solutions. J Antimicrob Chemother 1983; 11: 217–21.
Gleckman R, Blagg N, Joubert DW . Trimethoprim: Mechanisms of action, antimicrobial activity, bacterial resistance, pharmacokinetics, adverse reactions and therapeutic indications. Pharmacotherapy 1981; 1: 14–20.
Bushby SRM and Hitchings GH . Trimethoprim, a sulphonamide potentiator. Br J Pharmacol Chemother 1968; 33: 72–90.
Storm DR, Rosenthal KS, Swanson PE . Polymyxin and related peptide antibiotics. Annu Rev Biochem 1977; 46: 723–63.
Rosenblatt JE and Stewart PR . Combined activity of sulfamethoxazole, trimethoprim and polymyxin B against Gram-negative bacilli. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 1974; 6: 84–92.
Fahmy JA . Bacterial flora in relation to cataract extraction. V Effects of topical antibiotics on the pre-operative conjunctival flora. Acta Ophthalmol 1980; 58: 567–75.
Locatcher-Khorazo D . The effect on the ocular bacterial flora of local treatment with chloromycetin (chloramphenicol), terramycin or penicillin-streptomycin ophthalmic ointments in pre-operative cataract cases and miscellaneous infections. Am J Ophthalmol 1953; 36: 475–9.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bell, T., Slack, M., Harvey, S. et al. The effect of trimethoprim-polymyxin B sulphate ophthalmic ointment and chloramphenicol ophthalmic ointment on the bacterial flora of the eye when administered to the operated and unoperated eyes of patients undergoing cataract surgery. Eye 2, 324–329 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1038/eye.1988.61
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/eye.1988.61