Corneal Biofilm Plaques: A Novel Clinical Presentation

To report a novel clinical presentation of corneal biofilms, consisting of formation of superficial and recurrent corneal plaques.

Interventional case report. A 9-year-old boy presented with subepithelial, whitish, avascular, and recurrent corneal plaques without any clinical manifestations of active corneal inflammation and/or infection. He had a history of minor ocular trauma; otherwise, his medical history was unremarkable.

An excisional biopsy was performed under topical anesthesia. Histological analysis identified these plaques as clusters of gram-negative bacilli surrounded by an extracellular matrix. Samples were further evaluated with special stains (calcofluor white, Flamingo fluorescent dye, propidium iodide, and Gomori-Grocott) that demonstrated biofilm structures.

Corneal plaques are a very rare clinical presentation of corneal biofilms that allow prolonged survival of microorganisms even in the absence of prosthetic material and clinical signs or symptoms of corneal active inflammation and/or infection.