Diagnosis of herpes simplex keratitis
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Diagnosis of herpes simplex keratitis
IRAS ID
196700
Contact name
Stephen Kaye
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Research Development & Innovation Governance
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 11 months, 2 days
Research summary
Herpes Simplex Virus-1 (HSV-1) corneal ulceration (known as keratitis) is a leading cause of corneal blindness with an incidence of between 8.4 and 31.5 per 100,000 people.
Although the clinical features of HSV-1 keratitis are characteristic, there are other diseases with similar features. There has also been an increase in HSV-1 resistance to antiviral agents. It is therefore to identify the virus for clinical management.Collection of samples from corneal lesions is conventionally undertaken using a swab (cotton tipped) or a blade to scrape the edges of the ulcer. Swabs are however, difficult to localise to edge of the ulcer and blades require expertise. Swabs very commonly come into contact with the conjunctiva and eyelid and may lead to non-specific results.
An alternative method that has been shown to reliably diagnose bacterial infections of the cornea is to use small piece of filter paper known as a corneal impression membrane (CIM). It is superior to a blade,is simple to perform and less traumatic. It removes epithelial cells thus enabling the detection of intracellular microorganisms - which is important to detect HSV-1. It is easy to use and may be suitable for use by non-ophthalmologists. If a CIM could also be used to detect HSV-1 as well as bacteria, it would enable an efficient system to be introduced to identify the microorganism in cases of suspected microbial keratitis.
A laboratory study has demonstrated excellent detection of HSV-1 from a CIM.
The aim of this study is to compare the use of a CIM to a swab to detect and identify HSV.
REC name
North West - Greater Manchester West Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/NW/0021
Date of REC Opinion
15 Jan 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion