A Survey of Asian Eye Institutions on Perioperative Antibiotic Prophylaxis in Cataract Surgery

Abstract

Abstract Purpose: To determine current institutional practice patterns for the use of perioperative antibiotics and other measures to prevent infection after cataract surgery in Asia. Methods: An online survey-based study of leading eye institutions in China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. The survey was administered to 26 representative key opinion leaders from prominent tertiary eye institutions that are also national academic teaching institutions in Asia. Survey responses were collated and anonymized during analysis. Results: All surveyed institutions used povidone iodine for the pre-operative antiseptic preparation of the eye, with notable variations in the concentration of povidone iodine used for conjunctival sac instillation. Pre-operative topical antibiotics were prescribed by 61.5% and 69.2% of institutions in low-risk and high-risk cases, respectively. Regarding the use of intra-operative antibiotics, 60.0% and 66.7% of institutions administered intracameral antibiotics in low-risk and high-risk patients, respectively. Post-operative topical antibiotics use patterns were generally very similar in low-risk and high-risk patients. Over half of the institutions (52.2% and 68.0% in low-risk and high-risk patients, respectively) also indicated prolonged post-operative use of topical antibiotics (>2 weeks). Not all surveyed institutions had established policies/protocols for perioperative antibiotic use in cataract surgery, endophthalmitis surveillance, and/or a monitoring program for emerging antimicrobial resistance. Conclusion: There are variations in antimicrobial prophylaxis approaches to pre-operative, intra-operative and post-operative regimens in cataract surgery in Asia. More evidence-based research is needed to support the development of detailed guidelines for perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis to reduce post-operative infections.