Abstract
BackgroundFungal corneal ulcer is one of the major causes of visual impairment worldwide. Treatment of fungal corneal ulcer mainly depends on anti-fungal agents. In the current study, we developed an integrated combination therapy of cryotherapy and anti-fungal agents to facilitate effective treatment of fungal corneal ulcer.MethodsRabbit models of cornea infection were established using a combined method of intrastromal injection and keratoplasty. After treatment with cryotherapy and anti-fungal agents, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and confocal microscopy were conducted to observe changes in microstructure in the rabbits. Periodic acid Schiff A and hematoxylin and eosin staining were used for detection of histological changes.ResultsContinuous scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy observations showed that cryothermal treatment inhibited growth of fungal mycelium by destroying fungal cellular structures. Typical cryotherapy was effective in curing fungal corneal ulcer. Different fungi showed different susceptibilities to treatment. The curative effect of Candida albicans was the best, while that of Aspergillus fumigates was the worst.ConclusionsOur study provides a novel method of a combination of cryotherapy and anti-fungal agents for treatment of fungal corneal ulcer. This treatment could help facilitate the practice of fungal keratitis treatment in the future.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12886-015-0011-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
Fungal corneal ulcer is one of the major causes of visual impairment worldwide
In the current study, we developed an integrated therapy combined with cryotherapy and anti-fungal agents for the treatment of fungal corneal ulcer
Preparation of fungal suspension The fungal strains of Candida albicans, Fusarium solani, and Aspergillus fumigates were provided by the Department of Dermatology, Chinese Medical University
Summary
Fungal corneal ulcer is one of the major causes of visual impairment worldwide. Treatment of fungal corneal ulcer mainly depends on anti-fungal agents. We developed an integrated combination therapy of cryotherapy and anti-fungal agents to facilitate effective treatment of fungal corneal ulcer. Fungal corneal ulcer leads to severe ocular morbidity and blindness worldwide, in developing countries, such as China. Most of the patients with infectious fungal corneal ulcer in China are farmers who tend to ignore eye disorders at the early stage of the disease. Of more concern, those with fungal corneal ulcer do not receive medical care because of discounting the seriousness of the condition, or poverty. Fungal corneal ulcer has become a serious health problem in China [1,2,3]
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