To report risk factors, microbiological and epidemiological characteristics and treatment outcomes among pediatric patients with keratitis.

This study was taken place in a tertiary referral center of the ophthalmology. Medical records of pediatric patients with keratitis under the age 5 years were recorded during recent two years. Risk factors, microbiological and epidemiological characteristics and treatment outcomes among under 5 years pediatric patients with keratitis were gathered.

25 patients were included with a mean age of 2±2.5 years. The most common risk was ocular trauma (58.2%). Systemic factors were present in 16.3% of cases. Exposure keratopathy was the most common associated risk factor with systemic factors. The age of patients was 13 years (range 1month–17 years). Culture positivity rate was 48% (12 patients). The most common pathogen was Pseudomonas aeruginosa (35.3%) followed by Staphylococcus epidermidis (8.9%). Two children underwent tectonic procedure, there was not any case needing pars plana vitrectomy for treating endophthalmitis.

In this retrospective study, ocular trauma was the most frequent risk factor in under 5 years pediatric keratitis. The common risk factor associated with systemic conditions was exposure keratopathy. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was the most common pathogen in culture-positive cases. Most of the patients responded to medications without any therapeutic keratoplasty.