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Updated: Jun 6, 2026

Evaluating Therapeutic and Chemical Toxicity Using Organ-Cultured Porcine Corneas and Epithelial Wound Healing
03:57

Evaluating Therapeutic and Chemical Toxicity Using Organ-Cultured Porcine Corneas and Epithelial Wound Healing

Published on: January 10, 2025

Voriconazole versus natamycin as primary treatment in fungal corneal ulcers

Ritu Arora1, Deepa Gupta, Jawaharlal Goyal

  • 1Guru Nanak Eye Centre, New Delhi, India.

Clinical & Experimental Ophthalmology
|November 26, 2010
PubMed
Abstract

Insights

Topical 1% voriconazole and 5% natamycin are equally effective for treating fungal keratitis. Both treatments showed comparable resolution times and visual acuity gains in this pilot study.

Area of Science:

  • Ophthalmology
  • Mycology
  • Infectious Diseases

Background:

  • Fungal corneal ulcers require effective topical treatments.
  • Comparing novel antifungals to established therapies is crucial for clinical practice.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the efficacy of topical 1% voriconazole compared to 5% natamycin for fungal keratitis.
  • To determine if voriconazole offers an advantage over natamycin as a primary treatment.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective, randomized pilot study.
  • 30 patients with proven fungal keratitis randomly assigned to 5% natamycin or 1% voriconazole.
  • Outcomes assessed included time to resolution and visual acuity over a minimum 10-week follow-up.

Main Results:

  • 29 out of 30 patients achieved complete ulcer resolution.
  • Resolution times (24.3 days vs. 27.2 days) and visual acuity gains (1.12 vs. 0.77 LogMAR) were comparable between groups (P > 0.05).
  • Aspergillus spp. and Curvularia spp. were the most common fungal isolates.

Conclusions:

  • Topical 1% voriconazole is safe and effective for primary fungal keratitis treatment.
  • Voriconazole demonstrated comparable efficacy to conventional natamycin.
  • No added benefit of voriconazole over natamycin was observed in this study.

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