Fungal keratitis caused by Pseudallescheria boydii: clinical and mycological characteristics

Pseudallescheria keratitis is rare but important type of fungal keratitis because of the inherently resistance of the organism to many existing antifungal agents.

Slit-lamp and confocal microscopy were used for clinical examinations. Fungal isolates were identified based on morphological characteristics and DNA sequence of the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS). In vitro antifungal susceptibility testing for fungal isolates was performed according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI, M38-A2).

All patients had a history of ocular trauma. In clinical examination hypopion were seen in three patients. The main antifungal medications were topical voriconazole. After treatment the visual acuity of all patients improved in 2-3 weeks.

All four patients of Pseudallescheria keratitis had similar clinical features. Accurate and rapid identification of species should be helpful in treating p. boydii keratitis.