A clinical case of linear stromal (interstitial) keratitis

Abstract

Background. Keratitis, characterized by superficial inflammation, cellular infiltration and vascularization of the stroma with minimal involvement of the corneal epithelium and endothelium, is an extremely rare specific condition, that has been isolated, as a separate nosology – linear interstitial keratitis.The aim. Clinical case demonstration of linear stromal keratitis, using modern methods of corneal examination and world literature analysis, devoted to this problem, from the point of view of determining disease etiology.Materials and methods. Case demonstration of linear keratitis in a young patient with a recurrent course of the disease is presented.Results. Рresented clinical case confirms course features and lesion morphology of linear interstitial keratitis.Conclusion. Linear interstitial keratitis is a rare clinical phenomenon, and its etiology remains uncertain. Confocal microscopy is a promising method of studying linear interstitial keratitis in view of best resolution. Coherent tomography of anterior segment of the eye, is uninformative and does not reflect true depth of the pathological process. Mirror microscopy of endothelial cells confirms confocal microscopy data of panstromic process. Herpes simplex virus and pale treponema roles in the development of linear interstitial keratitis has not been confirmed by existing standard laboratory methods.

Keywords

• linear keratitis
• cornea
• ophthalmic herpes