title: The defences of the ocular surface.
abstract: Bacterial infection may be responsible for mild self-limiting disease, chronic disease or acute and devasting ocular destruction. This paper and those that follow deal with some of the clinical forms of disease which are encountered, the bacteria responsible, the mechanism of invasion and the natural defences and clinical management, including selection and delivery of antibiotics.
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology*; D001433:Bacteriolysis; D001798:Blood Proteins; D002570:Ceruloplasmin / Q000276:immunology; D003167:Complement Activation; D005128:Eye Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007070:Immunoglobulin A / Q000276:immunology; D007781:Lactoferrin / Q000276:immunology; D009113:Muramidase / Q000276:immunology; D011506:Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D013666:Tears / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D023181:Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides; D001798:Blood Proteins; D007070:Immunoglobulin A; D011506:Proteins; C011679:beta lysin, human; D002570:Ceruloplasmin; D009113:Muramidase; D007781:Lactoferrin