Treatment of Acremonium sp. keratomycosis - a review of literature:

Aleksandra Głowacka; Natalia Julia Cędzikowska

doi:10.24292/01.OT.321124

Aleksandra Głowacka Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Bialystok https://orcid.org/0009-0000-9389-7731
Natalia Julia Cędzikowska Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Bialystok https://orcid.org/0009-0002-7310-142X

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24292/01.OT.321124

Keywords: keratitis, Acremonium, opportunistic fungal infection

Abstract

Corneal infections may be caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi or protozoa. Fungal keratitis, usually associated with Fusarium, Candida and Aspergillus, develops from a saprophytic fungal infection as well, one of the agent being Acremonium sp. Acremonium infection occurs when a patient is suffering from a penetrating injury, common in ophthalmic patients. Symptoms of Acremonium-induced keratomycosis are similar to the usual presentation of a fungal infection - patients complain of decreased visual acuity, ocular pain, redness of the eye, floaters and corneal opacity. While there is no established method of treatment for Acremonium keratitis, usual antimycotics and antibiotics intended for keratomycosis are used - fluoroquinolones, azoles and polyenes. If pharmacotherapy does not yield favorable outcomes, surgical forms of treatment should be introduced, such as keratoplasty. If surgical methods are ineffective in infection control, an end-stage solution - enucleation is employed. Although Acremonium is an opportunistic fungal pathogen, the infection is generally effectively treated using pharmacotherapy.

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