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Deep microsporidial keratitis after keratoconjunctivitis
Author(s) -
Badenoch Paul R,
Coster Douglas J,
Sadlon Tania A,
Klebe Sonja,
Stirling John W,
Jaunzems Alvis E,
Mazierska Janina E
Publication year - 2011
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 - 10.1111/j.1442-9071.2011.02505.x
Subject(s) - medicine , ophthalmology , library science , research centre , computer science
[Extract] Microsporidia are intracellular pathogens of animals andhumans. Although not hyphal, a recent study suggests theyare fungi descended from an ancestral zygomycete. Theyhave a unique method for invading susceptible tissue: an internal coiled tube everts rapidly and sporoplasm moves into the cell as if through a hypodermic needle. In the human eye, microsporidial infection presents as keratoconjunctivitis or stromal keratitis. The former has been reported in HIV+ patients because of Encephalitozoon and in immunocompetent patients because of several genera. Stromal infection is seen in immunocompetent patients and is caused mostly by Vittaforma corneae. We report a case in which keratoconjunctivitis preceded deep stromal infection in a patient with a low neutrophil count