Late-onset haze associated with chikungunya infection

Abstract

A 42-year-old woman, who had undergone photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) 12 years earlier, complained of blurring of vision within 2 weeks of chikungunya infection. A central corneal stromal haze was observed in the left eye. Her corrected distance visual acuity was 20/200. The haze did not improve despite the use of topical corticosteroids; however, corneal clarity was restored, and vision improved with phototherapeutic keratectomy (PTK) and treatment with mitomycin-C (MMC) 0.02%. Late-onset stromal scarring can be triggered by systemic infection even years after PRK. PTK with MMC may be an effective treatment option for late-onset scars.