title: Tarantula hair keratitis.
abstract: We describe a 12-year-old boy in England with keratitis secondary to tarantula hairs embedded within the stroma of his cornea. Every attempt must be made to isolate these hairs at the first visit as they have a barbed nature and have a propensity to propagate through ocular tissues. A chronic keratitis requiring long-term steroid use may result if hairs persist in the cornea. Children who keep tarantulas as pets should be instructed on safe handling to prevent the tarantula from adopting defence mechanisms and shedding their hairs.
authors.affiliation: Alder Hey Children's Hospital, Eaton Road, Liverpool L12 2AP, United Kingdom. simranmangat36@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Simran Singh
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Mangat
authors.forename: Bill
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Newman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002648:Child; D005129:Eye Foreign Bodies / Q000150:complications* / Q000628:therapy; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006197:Hair; D006801:Humans; D007634:Keratitis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D057805:Pets; D018570:Risk Assessment; D013112:Spiders; D016896:Treatment Outcome