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Aim: To investigate the influence of anticorneal antibodies on the outcome of transplantation in recipients before penetrating keratoplasty. Methods: 100 consecutive penetrating keratoplasties performed between July 1995 and June 1996 were included in this study. Donor corneoscleral rim cryosections were incubated with recipient serum. Fixation of recipient IgM on donor corneas was revealed with a polyclonal anti-human μ-chain antibody. The mean follow up time was 61 months. Five years after transplantation, 63% of patients were available for follow up. During the follow up period, 15% of keratoplasties failed because of irreversible rejection. Results: Anti-donor stromal lamellae IgM were found in 14 recipients. Anti-donor keratocyte IgM were present in 28 recipients. Dilution of recipient serum (up to 1/800) did not modify the results of positive crossmatch assays. Crossmatch assays performed with positive recipient sera and negative donor corneoscleral rims were negative. No significant influence of IgM crossmatch results on graft survival and rejection-free graft survival was found. Conclusion: Donor specific anticorneal stroma IgM were found in 28% of recipients before transplantation. This pre-immunisation was not associated with a higher risk of transplantation rejection.

Aim: To identify predisposing factors and to define clinical and microbiological characteristics of bacterial keratitis in current practice. Methods: A retrospective analysis of the hospital records of patients presenting with bacterial keratitis and treated at the Quinze-Vingts National Center of Ophthalmology, Paris, France, was performed during a 20 month period. A bacterial keratitis was defined as a suppurative corneal infiltrate and overlying epithelial defect associated with presence of bacteria on corneal scraping and/or that was cured with antibiotic therapy. Risk factors, clinical and microbiological data were collected. Results: 300 cases (291 patients) of presumed bacterial keratitis were included. Potential predisposing factors, usually multiple, were identified in 90.6% of cases. Contact lens wear was the main risk factor (50.3%). Trauma or a history of keratopathy was found in 15% and 21% of cases, respectively. An organism was identified in 201 eyes (68%). 83% of the infections involved Gram positive bacteria, 17% involved Gram negative bacteria, and 2% were polymicrobial. Gram negative bacteria were associated with severe anterior chamber inflammation (p=0.004), as well as greater surface of infiltrates (p=0.01). 99% of ulcers resolved with treatment, but only 60% of patients had visual acuity better than the level at admission, and 5% had very poor visual outcome. Conclusions: Contact lens wear is the most important risk factor. Most community acquired bacterial ulcers resolve with appropriate treatment.

AIMS—To evaluate the influence of intraocular lens (IOL) placement on triple procedure clinical results and to investigate whether it is appropriate to use phacoemulsification in patients with large lens nucleus. METHODS—40 consecutive penetrating keratoplasties combined with cataract extraction performed in a single institution were studied. Whenever possible a capsulorhexis was performed and the IOL was placed into the capsular bag. Phacoemulsification was used when the nucleus was too large to pass through the capsulorhexis. RESULTS—Out of 25 patients with an intact capsulorhexis phacoemulsification was used in 13 (52.0%) whereas the entire nucleus passed through the capsulorhexis in the remaining 12 patients (48%). The average 12 month visual acuity was 0.46 (SD 0.21) in patients with in the bag IOL (n = 23) and 0.29 (0.08) in patients with ciliary sulcus IOL (n = 13) (p = 0.04). Elevated intraocular pressure occurred in 26.1% (6/23) of patients with in the bag IOL and 61.5% (8/13) of patients with ciliary sulcus IOL (p = 0.08). The average postoperative graft thickness at 18 months was 552 (27) µm in the former group and 650 (29) µm in the latter group (p = 0.04). No significant difference in graft survival, postoperative endothelial cell density, astigmatism, and videokeratoscopic measurements was found between both groups. CONCLUSION—In the bag placement of the intraocular lens during the triple procedure results in better outcome of transplantation than ciliary sulcus placement of the IOL. Phacoemulsification allows removal of large nuclei through a 5 mm capsulorhexis without performing relaxing incisions out towards the periphery of the capsule. Keywords: corneal transplantation; graft survival; intraocular lens; triple procedure; visual acuity

Endophthalmitis, although rare, is one of the most vision threatening complication of cataract surgery. The majority of these infections are bacterial in the Western world. The occurrence of fungal endophthalmitis after cataract surgery is rare as well as polymicrobial infections.1 We report a case of chronic postoperative endophthalmitis caused by bacterial and fungal pathogenic agents. A 73 year old woman was referred for pain and redness in the left eye. Her past history was remarkable for an extracapsular cataract extraction in the left eye with a posterior chamber intraocular lens implant that had been performed in Turkey in 1998. The patient had recurrent episodes of decreased vision and ocular pain in the postoperative course and was treated with peribulbar injections of corticosteroids over 2 years. On presentation, visual …