Preface

This book is a new addition for a broad-spectrum library in ophthalmology and other spe‐ cialties in medicine of "InTech." It addresses ocular infections. These infections may result in blindness if not correctly diagnosed and promptly treated. Therefore, it is essential to be fully aware and knowledgeable about the manifestations of these diseases, and this book covers some of the different aspects of them. The chapters were written by experts from around the globe and these reflect the importance of the subject.

This book gives a concise and descriptive text, including diagnostic steps, laboratory tests, and treatment options. The first chapter addresses the broad spectrum of ocular infections as an introduction for the next ones. The second chapter by Dr. Shalini Malhotra, Dr. Shar‐ ma, Dr. Bhatia, and Dr. Hans concerns with bacterial infections (endophthalmitis). Prof. Nancy Malla and Dr. Kapil Goyal discuss parasitic infections, while Prof. Lidia Chomicz specifically addresses *Acanthamoeba* infections. The last chapter on this section on specific clinical entities by Dr. Carlos Alberto Pantoja-Meléndez is on mixed ocular infections (coin‐ fections). The last chapter by Dr. Maria Maliñska and Dr. Brygida Kwiatkowska on miscella‐ neous issues deals with dry eyes as a factor contributing to ocular infections. This book is a balanced result of efforts to publish in timely manner and efforts to cover the topic as much as possible. Hopefully, additional books will cover more aspects of ophthalmology.

My deep gratitude is for each author for his or her time and effort. Deep appreciation goes to Ms. Iva Simcic, the Publishing Process Manager, for her extensive work to publish this book and to the publisher for an excellent project. My gratitude is for the readers for apply‐ ing the material in this book to better assist patients worldwide without any limitation or barrier.

> **Shimon Rumelt, MD, MPA** Western Galilee Medical Center, Nahariya Faculty of Medicine, Bar-Ilan University, Zefat Israel

**Introduction to Ocular Infections**

#### **Overview of Common and Less Common Ocular Infections Overview of Common and Less Common Ocular Infections**

Shimon Rumelt Shimon Rumelt

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/65957

#### **Abstract**

Infection may occur in any tissue of the eye, orbit, and adnexa. Infection may spread directly through contact and indirectly through blood vessels (especially valveness veins) and nerves. A proper treatment for ocular infections is imperative because it dictates the prognosis. Ocular infections may share identical clinical finding and be caused by different etiologic agents. To obtain the best outcome, a systematic approach for ocular infections is essential. This chapter describes the characteristic clinical features and manifestations of some common ocular infections and the differentiation between them and inflammations and other diseases even without using new imaging modalities such as confocal electron microscopy, anterior segment optical coherence tomography, and laboratory tests including polymeraze chain reaction.

**Keywords:** diagnosis, treatment, eyelid infections, conjunctiva, cornea, uvea, endoph‐ thalmitis, panophthalmitis, intraocular, retina, orbita

### **1. Introduction**

A proper treatment for ocular infections is imperative because it dictates the prognosis. To obtain the best outcome, a systematic approach for ocular infections is essential. This chapter is aimed to describe the characteristic clinical features and manifestations of some common ocular infections and the differentiation between them and inflammations and other diseases even without using new imaging modalities such as confocal electron microscopy and anterior segment optical coherence tomography and laboratory tests including polymerase chain reaction.

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Identifying and treating ocular infections can be challenging. Ocular infections may share identical clinical result and be caused by different etiologic agents. The infection is usually named according to the ocular structures involved with the suffix "itis" meaning infectious or noninfectious inflammation.
