Impact of topical corticosteroid pretreatment on susceptibility of the injured murine cornea to Pseudomonas aeruginosa colonization and infection

Abstract

Research with animal models of Pseudomonas aeruginosa keratitis has shown that use of a topical corticosteroid alone against an established infection can significantly increase the number of colonizing bacteria or worsen clinical disease. Moreover, retrospective analysis has suggested that corticosteroid use in humans is associated with an increased risk of keratitis in eyes with preexisting disease. Thus, while corticosteroids are often used to reduce ocular inflammation in the absence of infection, the risk of opportunistic infection remains a concern. However, the effect of corticosteroids on the intrinsic barrier function of uninfected corneas is unknown. Here, we tested if short-term topical corticosteroid treatment of an uninfected murine cornea would increase susceptibility to P. aeruginosa colonization or infection after epithelial injury. Topical prednisolone acetate (1 %) was administered to one eye of C57BL/6 mice three times a day for 3 days; control eyes were treated with sterile PBS. Prior to inoculation with a cytotoxic P. aeruginosa corneal isolate strain 6206, corneas were subject to superficial-injury by tissue paper blotting, or scratchinjured followed by 12 h of healing. Previously we have shown that blotting renders mouse corneas susceptible to P. aeruginosa adhesion, but not infection, while 12 h healing reduces susceptibility to infection after scratching. Corneas were evaluated at 48 h for bacterial colonization and microbial keratitis (MK). To monitor impact on wound healing, corneal integrity was examined by fluorescein staining immediately after scarification and after 12 h healing. For both the tissue paper blotting and scratch-injury models, there was no significant difference in P. aeruginosa colonization at 48 h between corticosteroid-pretreated eyes and controls. With the *

Topical Immunomodulators Improve Clinical Signs of Vernal Keratoconjunctivitis and Atopic Keratoconjunctivitis: A Meta-Analysis

“…The development of topical corticosteroids dramatically improved control over these severe forms of allergic eye disease [1,[16][17][18][19]. However, their use tends to be strictly limited and carefully monitored as long-term use may result in several significant side effects and complications, such as the formation of posterior sub-capsular cataract [20], glaucoma [21], and secondary infections such as bacterial or fungal infections [22][23][24][25][26].…”

Topical Vitamin C Promotes the Recovery of Corneal Alkali Burns in Mice

“…The surgical treatment of ocular burns includes amniotic membrane transplantation, limbal stem cell transplantation, and penetrating keratoplasty. Medications such as citrate [ 4 ], tetracycline [ 5 ], corticosteroids [ 6 ], and medroxyprogesterone [ 7 ] have been shown to benefit corneal wound healing.…”