Loading...
Herpes simplex virus (HSV) keratitis is treated routinely with oral acyclovir and its derivatives, and, as in other herpes infections, frequency of recurrences can be reduced by using these agents as prophylaxis. However, studies have suggested that immunocompetent patients with keratitis (unlike immunocompetent patients with genital or oral HSV infections) might develop drug-resistant disease when prophylaxis is used long term.
Among 78 Dutch patients with HSV keratitis followed for a median of 17.6 years, 8 had uniformly resistant viral isolates on sequential testing during recurrences, and 27 had resistant isolates identified at least once. Among patients who did not receive prophylaxis, drug susceptibility did not change appreciably over…