Isolation of Klebsiella ozaenae from a corneal abscess

In this report, a case of bacterial keratitis caused by Klebsiella ozaenae is presented. The patient was an otherwise healthy 65-year-old woman with a history of chronic ocular inflammation and a corneal transplant two years prior to the appearance of the corneal ulcer. K. ozaenae is uncommon as a cause of keratitis and is recognized as a cause of atrophic rhinitis and as an opportunistic pathogen in patients with various underlying diseases. The organism was not identified with the computer-assisted API 20E for identification of the Enterobacteriaceae, and conventional methods were required to demonstrate its unique properties. The clinical spectrum of disease, the characteristics of the organism, and its susceptibility to antimicrobial agents are discussed.