Purpose  

To identify the associated factors and study the clinical and microbiological characteristics of corneal ulcers resulting in evisceration and enucleation in elderly patients in a tertiary care hospital.

Methods  

A review of all patients who required evisceration or enucleation due to microbial keratitis at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, Melbourne, Australia between July 1998 and November 2007 was performed. Of these, patients more than 60 years of age were included in the study for analysis.

Results  

Forty-seven patients with microbial keratitis were included in the study. The mean age of patients was 81 ± 9.39 years. Major ocular factors associated were glaucoma (49%), persistent corneal epithelial defect (38%) and use of corticosteroid eye drops (23%). Most common associated systemic factor was rheumatoid arthritis (36%). The indications for evisceration or enucleation were extensive non-healing microbial keratitis (22/47) and corneal perforation secondary to microbial keratitis (17/47). Pseudomonas aeruginosa was the most common pathogen, present in 15 patients, and more than 45% of the strains tested were resistant to chloramphenicol.

Conclusions  

Corneal ulcers that result in the loss of eye in elderly population are frequently associated with glaucoma and persistent epithelial defects. The majority of these cases have non-healing microbial keratitis caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.