title: Topical ofloxacin in the treatment of Pseudomonas keratitis in a rabbit model.
abstract: Ofloxacin, a new quinolone antibiotic with a broad spectrum of activity, is very effective against Pseudomonas aeruginosa in vitro. Its effectiveness was studied in a rabbit model of tobramycin-sensitive P. aeruginosa. Treatment groups received either vehicle, tobramycin 0.3%, or ofloxacin 0.3%. Twelve hours of treatment decreased the bacterial counts from a mean of 2.2 +/- 0.7 x 10(6) colony forming units (cfu) per cornea in the vehicle group to means of 513 +/- 670 and 435 +/- 524 cfu in the tobramycin and ofloxacin groups, respectively. This decrease in bacterial counts was statistically significant (p = 0.001 for tobramycin and ofloxacin each compared with control, p = 0.86 for tobramycin compared with ofloxacin). After seven days, all antibiotic-treated corneas were sterile and the epithelial defects healed at comparable rates. Aqueous humor drug levels were higher in infected eyes without an intact epithelium (p = 0.02); in eyes with intact epithelium, concentrations of ofloxacin were higher than were those of tobramycin (p = 0.002). In this animal model, ofloxacin proved to be an effective antibiotic with no evidence of toxicity.
authors.affiliation: Doheny Eye Institute, University of Southern California School of Medicine, Los Angeles 90033.
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Gritz
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: McDonnell
authors.forename: T Y
authors.initials: TY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Tang-Liu
authors.forename: B B
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Hubbard
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gwon
mesh_terms: D000287:Administration, Topical; D000818:Animals; D001082:Aqueous Humor / Q000378:metabolism; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D015818:Eye Infections, Bacterial / Q000188:drug therapy*; D007634:Keratitis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology; D015242:Ofloxacin / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011552:Pseudomonas Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D011817:Rabbits; D014031:Tobramycin / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D015242:Ofloxacin; D014031:Tobramycin