Topical ocular local anaesthetics as an adjunctive measure in the day-1 treatment of bacterial keratitis

ABSTRACT Introduction The day-1 topical antibiotic treatment for bacterial keratitis (BK) can have a significant impact on treatment outcomes. Symptoms associated with this condition (pain, photophobia, blepharospasm and increased lacrimation) may compromise the effectiveness of topical antibiotic treatment by reducing the antibiotic contact time with the cornea. Topical ocular local anaesthetics (TOLAs) have the potential to alleviate these symptoms and thus potentiate the effect of the antibiotic drops instilled. Areas covered The literature on possible ocular side-effects of TOLAs was searched using Google and PubMed databases (Filters: Humans, English, abstract available), with no filters applied for date of publication. Relevant papers were reviewed, and possible barriers to their use on day-1 in the treatment of BK were identified, examined, and either found to be not applicable to short term use or strategies were identified to resolve any barriers. Published evidence to support the possible potentiation of antibiotic effect via the use of TOLAs was also reviewed. Expert opinion Perceived barriers to the short-term use of TOLAs in BK are not supported by the literature, and there is evidence to suggest that higher corneal antibiotic concentrations may be achieved by using TOLAs in conjunction with topical antibiotic drops in BK on day-1.