Prognosis Of Acanthamoeba Keratitis With Accelerated Corneal Crosslinking And Medical Treatment

Department of Cornea, Beijing Aier-Intech Eye Hospital, Beijing, China.

This retrospective clinical study involved a chart review of patients diagnosed with acanthamoeba keratitis who underwent accelerated CXL combined with topical antimicrobials at Beijing Aier-Intech Eye Hospital from July 2018 to January 2023.

Seventeen eyes from 17 patients were included. Infections in all cases were successfully controlled. The onset of treatment ranged from 0.5 to 5 months after infection. Before treatment, the best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was HM-0.4. After stabilization of the infections, 3 cases developed mild haze with BCVA of 1.0, 3 cases had corneal nebula with BCVA of 0.3-0.6. 11 cases had leukoplakia with peripheral neovascularization. Among them, 6 cases underwent lamellar keratoplasty, 1 case underwent penetrating keratoplasty, and 2 cases underwent penetrating keratoplasty with cataract removal and Intraocular Lens Implantation, achieving a postoperative VA ranging from 0.1 to 1.0. Two patients refused transplantation and had BCVA of <0.1.

Accelerated CXL combined with medical treatments effectively controlled the progression of Acanthamoeba keratitis. However, further research is needed to explore the efficacy of CXL in managing infections.