[Acanthamoebic keratitis]

Abstract

Acanthamoebic keratitis is still a rare infection. It occurs in contact lens-wearers, especially when saline is prepared at home from contaminated tap water. There are periods of remission, and occasionally misleading findings resembling those of herpetic keratitis, which make the diagnosis difficult. The isolation of the acanthamoeba is not easy and special culture media are required. Early recognition and aggressive therapy with antiamebic medication and epithelial debridement, often in conjunction with penetrating keratoplasty, are needed. We describe the clinical course, laboratory diagnosis and treatment of 3 patients with acanthamoebic keratitis, 2 men aged 20 and 25, respectively and a women aged 42.