Table 1 National and local secondary care antimicrobial prescribing guidelines for the management of bacterial conjunctivitis. Information on national guidelines were adapted from Public Health England [11] guidance. Local guidelines are derived from the Adult and Children Treatment of Eye Infections and Ophthalmology Handbook [7]. Both guidelines highlight the importance of self-care as the initial approach to management of non-severe conjunctivitis, only proceeding to pharmacotherapy where this fails or the infection is severe
From: Antibacterial resistance in ophthalmic infections: a multi-centre analysis across UK care settings
Public Health England guidelines for pharmacotherapy for conjunctivitis [11] | Local secondary care guidelines for pharmacotherapy for conjunctivitis [7] |
|---|---|
First line: chloramphenicol eye drops (0.5%) or ointment (1%) | First line: chloramphenicol eye drops (0.5%) or ointment (1%) |
Second line: fusidic acid (1%) gel | Second line/alternative: moxifloxacin eye drops (0.5%) |
Other options in children: | |
• Fusidic acid eye drops (1%) • Erythromycin ointment (0.5%) |