Mycotic Infection of the Eye:  Monosporium Apiospermum Associated with Corneal Ulcer

Although dermatophytes occasionally infect superficial portions of the mucous membrane and skin of the eyelids, primary and secondary mycotic infections of the eye are relatively rare. Birge¹ recently published an excellent comprehensive review, with more than 300 references, dealing with infections of the eye caused by fungi and fungus-like higher bacteria. Therefore, a detailed summary of the literature would hardly serve any significant purpose in this paper. An extensive review of many published papers on the general subject failed to disclose any instance in which Monosporium apiospermum was associated with corneal ulcer or other infection of the eye. The purpose of this paper is to present the clinical and pathologic observations in a patient with corneal ulcer and hypopyon which failed to respond to antibiotics, sulfonamide drugs, or other therapeutic measures, which are usually successful. M. apiospermum was cultured from the lesion, and fungi were demonstrated in histologic sections