Surveillance of the susceptibility of ocular bacterial pathogens to the fluoroquinolone gatifloxacin and other antimicrobials in Europe during 2001/2002.

Objectives: To determine the identity of European ocular bacterial pathogens and their susceptibility to topical antimicrobial agents.

Methods: Bacterial isolates derived from clinically significant ocular infections were collected from 10 European centres. Bacteria were re-identified and susceptibility to gatifloxacin, ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, fusidic acid, gentamicin and chloramphenicol was determined using the NCCLS agar incorporation method at a central testing laboratory.

Results: Five hundred and thirty-two isolates were submitted for analysis. The most common pathogen was methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus, followed by Haemophilus influenzae and Streptococcus pneumoniae. Gatifloxacin was the most potent antimicrobial agent tested for isolates from each European country as measured by pure MIC or percentage resistance (using 95% confidence intervals). Only methicillin-resistant S. aureus was in any way refractory to the action of gatifloxacin and other fluoroquinolones.

Conclusions: Fluoroquinolones offer broad-spectrum coverage for the treatment of ocular pathogens. Gatifloxacin ophthalmic solution should be a significant improvement on currently available fluoroquinolones mainly due to enhanced activity against streptococci and coagulase-negative staphylococci (which accounted for almost one-third of ocular pathogens).