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Fluoroquinolones in the treatment of bacterial keratitis
K S Bower1, R P Kowalski, Y J Gordon
1Department of Ophthalmology, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, PA 15213, USA.
Purpose:
We evaluated the potential role of three topical fluoroquinolones in the treatment of bacterial keratitis by means of a laboratory database.
Methods:
Antibiotic susceptibilities were determined for 153 isolates from patients with bacterial keratitis. Results were analyzed for each fluoroquinolone individually and in combination with cefazolin.
Results:
Predicted susceptibility to each cefazolin-fluoroquinolone combination (98.7%) was superior to that for single-agent therapy with ofloxacin (88.2%), ciprofloxacin (82.3%), or norfloxacin (80.4%) (P = .0002). A cefazolin-fluoroquinolone combination (98.7%) was comparable to a cefazolin-gentamicin combination (97.4%).
Conclusions:
Combination therapy with cefazolin and a fluoroquinolone offers a reasonable alternative for the treatment of bacterial keratitis. Single-agent therapy with fluoroquinolones for vision-threatening bacterial keratitis is not advised.