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Etiologies of Infectious Keratitis in Malawi.
Etiologies of Infectious Keratitis in Malawi.
- Source :
-
The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene [Am J Trop Med Hyg] 2024 Jul 16; Vol. 111 (3), pp. 694-697. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Jul 16 (Print Publication: 2024). - Publication Year :
- 2024
-
Abstract
- Infectious keratitis is a leading cause of corneal blindness worldwide with little information known about causative etiologies in Malawi, Africa. This area is resource-limited with ophthalmologist and microbiology services. The Department of Ophthalmology at the Kamuzu College of Health Sciences in Blantyre, Malawi, is a participating site of an international corneal ulcer consortium, capriCORN (Comprehensive Analysis of Pathogens, Resistomes, and Inflammatory-markers in the CORNea). In this study, 50 patients with corneal ulcers were swabbed for pathogen identification using RNA-sequencing. Corneal trauma was reported in 41% and 19% of the patients worked in agriculture. A pathogen was identified in 58% of the cases. Fungal pathogens predominated, followed by viruses and bacteria. Aspergillus, Fusarium, HSV-1, and Gardnerella were the most common pathogens detected. 50% of patients reported treatment with an antibiotic before presentation. Pathogens unusual for infectious keratitis, such as Subramaniula asteroids, Aureobasidium pullulans, and Gardnerella vaginalis, were also detected.
- Subjects :
- Humans
Malawi epidemiology
Male
Adult
Female
Middle Aged
Corneal Ulcer microbiology
Corneal Ulcer epidemiology
Young Adult
Adolescent
Eye Infections, Fungal microbiology
Eye Infections, Fungal epidemiology
Aged
Fungi isolation & purification
Fungi classification
Bacteria isolation & purification
Bacteria classification
Cornea microbiology
Cornea pathology
Keratitis microbiology
Keratitis epidemiology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1476-1645
- Volume :
- 111
- Issue :
- 3
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 39013379
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.24-0149