May 2004
Volume 45, Issue 13
Free
ARVO Annual Meeting Abstract  |   May 2004
Contamination Rate of Autologous Serum for Management of Ocular Surface Disorders leading to Dry Eye.
Author Affiliations & Notes
  • V.G. Kanade
    Cornea and Refractive Surgery Service, Yale Eye Center., New Haven, CT
  • J.C. Ramos–Esteban
    Cornea and Refractive Surgery, Yale Eye Center, New Haven, CT
  • S. Tauber
    Cornea and Refractive Surgery Service. Yale Eye Center., New Haven, CT
  • Footnotes
    Commercial Relationships  V.G. Kanade, None; J.C. Ramos–Esteban, None; S. Tauber, None.
  • Footnotes
    Support  none
Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science May 2004, Vol.45, 3897. doi:
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      V.G. Kanade, J.C. Ramos–Esteban, S. Tauber; Contamination Rate of Autologous Serum for Management of Ocular Surface Disorders leading to Dry Eye. . Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2004;45(13):3897.

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      © ARVO (1962-2015); The Authors (2016-present)

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Abstract

Abstract: : Purpose: To study contamination rate of autologous serum artificial tears for treatment of patients with ocular surface disorders leading to dry eye. Methods: A retrospective evaluation of 34 patients with dry eye, (23 females and 11 males, mean age 62.5 years ± SD17.75) secondary to ocular surface disorders treated with autologous serum diluted up to 20% with sterile saline as final concentration. The indications for treatment included: tear film insufficiency (14), unspecified keratitis (6), penetrating keratoplasty (2), corneal opacity (4), corneal ulcer (3), exposure keratitis (2), neurotrophic ulcer (1), recurrent erosion (1), idiopathic corneal edema (1). Autologous serum was sent for bacterial, viral and fungal cultures immediately after preparation by direct inoculation of serum drops into culture media. Random survey cultures were obtained from 10 patients during treatment period from 12/21/02 to 10/08/03. All patients were closely monitored clinically for development of infection. Results: The rate of contamination after autologous serum preparation in our laboratory was zero. Mean average time from initiation of treatment to collection of survey cultures was 8.8 months (±5.25 months). Four out of ten patients who were randomly selected for collection of survey cultures had a contaminated bottle. The identified organisms were: mixed gram positive/negative bacteria, acinetobacter baumannai, lactobacillus species and mixed flora respectively. None of the viral and fungal cultures isolated any organisms. No clinical infections were documented during the study period in any of the 34 patients. No adverse side effects were noted. Conclusions: Autologous serum is a safe and efficient treatment for ocular surface disorders leading to dry eye. Despite 40 % contamination rate none of the patients developed infection. Our results emphasize the need for better patient education in handling of serum bottles.

Keywords: cornea: tears/tear film/dry eye • cornea: clinical science 
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