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Antimicrobial susceptibility of 19 Australian corneal isolates of Acanthamoeba
Author(s) -
Lim Li,
Coster Douglas J,
Badenoch Paul R
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
clinical and experimental ophthalmology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.3
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1442-9071
pISSN - 1442-6404
DOI - 10.1046/j.1442-9071.2000.00275.x
Subject(s) - acanthamoeba , acanthamoeba keratitis , biguanide , medicine , chlorhexidine , microbiology and biotechnology , antimicrobial , disinfectant , biology , pathology , dentistry , metformin , insulin
Purpose : To determine the in vitro drug susceptibility of Australian corneal isolates of Acanthamoeba and to correlate the results with patient treatment and visual outcome. Methods : Acanthamoeba isolates were obtained from a reference laboratory. Cyst suspensions were prepared from 19 strains and exposed to 10 antimicrobial agents for 7 days. The minimum drug concentrations required to inhibit excystation were determined. Inhibited cells were then plated out to determine minimum cysticidal concentrations. Results : Overall, propamidine proved to be the most active anti‐ Acanthamoeba agent tested. The disinfectant polyhexamethylene biguanide, either pure or in Baquacil, was also effective. Pentamidine, hexamidine, chlorhexidine and chloroxylenol had intermediate activity, while neomycin, amphotericin B and povidone‐iodine had poor activity. There was no clear relationship between in vitro susceptibility and visual outcome. Conclusions : Propamidine and polyhexamethylene biguanide drops are recommended as initial choices for the treatment of Acanthamoeba keratitis. The variability in the susceptibility to any one agent suggests that individual testing of isolates is necessary to identify the most appropriate treatment. A number of factors influence visual outcome in these cases; further studies are required to resolve the importance or otherwise of in vitro susceptibility.