Case study: Exogenous endophthalmitis

In this article we will look at inflammation of the eye through external causes such as surgery, trauma to the eye or through spread of external infection of the eye. Such inflammatory disease of external origin is termed exogenous endophthalmitis and represents the most common type of infection. Around one in 1,000 cases are directly linked to intraocular surgery such as cataract surgery, corneal transplant ation, glaucoma trabeculectomy surgery and vitrectomy. Very rarely, it can be related to strabismus surgery (one in 30,000).

In this article, I will offer you an insight into a rare form of direct infection suffered by a contact lens wearer that eventually led to endophthalmitis and hope in some way to convey the experience of the trauma the patient had to endure before finally a positive outcome was reached. Practitioners, and our patients, tend to take contact lens wear for granted but, when an infection occurs, it is the urgency of the action we take that will determine the outcome as to whether one’s eyesight is preserved.