Antibiotics not beneficial as a preventive therapy

Patients who received ophthalmic antibiotics to prevent infection after intravitreal drug injections frequently became resistant to several antibiotics according to a recent study. Antibiotics are commonly used in patients receiving intravitreal injections for wet macular degeneration because the risk of infection and the complications associated with infection are so serious. Twenty-four patients took part in the four month study and ranged in age from 42 to 97 with the average age being 75. A swab was taken from the conjunctiva at the time of enrollment and then after each drug injection. Each participant was assigned to receive injections of one of four antibiotics. What researchers discovered is that patients were found to be resistant to three different antibiotics and that 67.5% were resistant to at least five antibiotics. The study findings indicate a need for ophthalmologists to use more caution when using ophthalmic antibiotics after intravitreal injections to lessen the possibility of antibiotic resistance.* Elise Ervin Staff Writer