Abstract
Purpose To evaluate a novel two-stage technique to increase yield of bacteria isolated from infected corneal ulcers.
Methods A new blade was designed to remove friable material from infected corneal ulcers. The new blade was used in combination with standard tissue micro-homogenisation equipment in a two-stage technique intended to distribute biopsy samples evenly between relevant agar plates. Patients with presumed-bacterial corneal ulcers underwent sequential corneal sampling using the new two-stage technique and a scalpel blade, used without micro-homogenisation (the order of sampling was varied between two groups). Bacterial isolation rates were compared using the chi-squared test.
Results Twenty-four patients with presumed-bacterial corneal ulcers were studied. The overall positive bacterial isolation rate was 88%, with identical bacterial isolation rates for the new two-stage technique and the scalpel blade (71%). The new technique isolated bacteria from three ulcers that had initially been ‘sterile’ when sampled with a scalpel blade. Polymicrobial infections were identified in two ulcers with the new blade where only a single organism had been identified using the scalpel blade (not significantly different).
Conclusions The new two-stage technique shows promise for improving bacterial isolation rates from presumed-bacterial corneal ulcers.
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This research was undertaken with financial support from Alcon (UK) Ltd
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Diamond, J., Leeming, J., Coombs, G. et al. Corneal biopsy with tissue micro homogenisation for isolation of organisms in bacterial keratitis. Eye 13, 545–549 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/eye.1999.135
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/eye.1999.135
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