Eye Case of the Week

Eye Case of the Week

 

Question:

What is the cause of the corneal lesion in these two different patients?

 

Answer:

Two different herpes simplex keratitis patients in the same week!

Both presented with a classic epithelial herpetic dendrite

#1: First presentation, two weeks history of a sore left eye. Seen GP, treated with antibiotic eye drops and no improvement.

#2: The patient decided to stop oral valtrex but continue steroid eye drops.

 

Management:

Aciclovir 3% 5x/day (Brand name: Zovirax or Acivision). Zovirax is in short supply but Acivision is readily available.

Plus, prophylactic antibiotic coverage, Chlorsig qid.

Alternatively, you could liaise their GP or an Ophthalmologist for a prescription for oral anti virals such as Valtrex 500mg tid for one week.