title: Presence of anaerobic bacteria in conjunctivitis associated with wearing contact lenses.
abstract: Ten anaerobic bacterial species were found in conjunctival cultures obtained from six patients who wore contact lenses and developed conjunctivitis. In three instances the anaerobic bacteria were associated with facultative bacteria. The predominant anaerobic isolates were Peptostreptococcus species (three isolates), Bacteroides sp. (two), and Fusobacterium sp. (two). It was the practice of five of the six patients to wet their lenses with saliva. It is recommended that a culture for anaerobes be obtained from any patient who uses contact lenses and develops conjunctivitis.
authors.affiliation: Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Brook
mesh_terms: D001421:Bacteria, Anaerobic / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D003231:Conjunctivitis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D003261:Contact Lenses / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D012463:Saliva; D014906:Wetting Agents
chemical_list: D014906:Wetting Agents