High-Dose Oral Posaconazole for the Treatment of Recalcitrant Fungal Keratitis
Tanner J. Ferguson, Rachel A. Downes, Carlos M. Isada, Jeffrey M. Goshe
Abstract
PURPOSE: To report the successful treatment of 3 cases of recalcitrant fungal keratitis (FK) with high-dose oral posaconazole. METHODS: This is a series of 3 patients from a single academic center with a culture-positive FK who were treated with oral posaconazole after failing to respond to conventional treatments. RESULTS: All 3 patients had a history of contact lens wear. Two of the 3 cases were culture positive for Fusarium and the other for Paecilomyces . The infections of all 3 failed to respond to conventional antifungal therapies including varying combinations of topical, systemic, and intraocular antifungal therapies. All 3 cases rapidly responded to high-dose oral posaconazole ranging from 500 to 600 mg once daily. In 1 case, multiple courses of high-dose therapy were required to treat delayed recurrences of a latent infection. There were no significant adverse effects with the elevated dose, and treatment was administered with the guidance of an infectious disease specialist. CONCLUSIONS: In cases of recalcitrant FK failing to respond to conventional therapies, high-dose posaconazole, in the delayed-release tablet formulation, can be an effective treatment option.