Bacterial Ocular Infections in Iran: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

OBJECTIVES: Eye infections can be caused by several microorganisms and the most common causative bacterial agents are staphylococci, streptococci, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, viridans group streptococci, and P. aeruginosa as the cause of ocular infections in Iran. METHODS: We conducted a systematic search on the studies published by Iranian authors from January 2000 to December 2020 in Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, and Embase. Eligible studies were selected according to the defined inclusion/exclusion criteria. Statistical heterogeneity between and within groups was estimated by the Q-statistic and I(2) index. The funnel plots, Duval and Tweedie trim, and fill methods were obtained to evaluate the evidence of publication bias. RESULTS: Twenty-seven studies were included in this review. According to the meta-analysis results, the prevalence of S.epidermidis was 19.1% (95% CI: 12.5–28.1). It was estimated 6.9% (95% CI: 4.4–10.6), 6.7% (95% CI: 4.6–9.6), and 3.3% (95% CI: 1.8–5.8) for P.aeruginosa, S. aureus, and viridans streptococci, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: (S). epidermidis is the prevalent bacterial agents responsible for eye-associated infections in Iran.