Comparison of causative microorganisms of posttraumatic endophthalmitis with and without retained intraocular foreign bodies

BACKGROUND: The goals of this work were to report the demographic characteristics of patients with clinically diagnosed endophthalmitis with or without intraocular foreign bodies (IOFBs) and to analyze the causative microorganisms. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 1257 patients with clinically diagnosed posttraumatic endophthalmitis who were admitted to Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center between January 1, 2013, and August 31, 2020. RESULTS: Of the 1257 patients with clinically diagnosed posttraumatic endophthalmitis, 452 (36.0%) patients had IOFBs. Male dominance was more common among the patients with IOFBs than the patients without IOFBs. The average age of the patients with IOFBs was older than that of the patients without IOFBs. The most common microbial pathogens in these two groups were Gram-positive cocci and Gram-negative bacilli. Gram-positive bacilli were more common in the patients with IOFBs than in those without IOFBs (17.9 vs. 9.4%), and Bacillus spp. accounted for 12.6 and 5.5%, respectively. Fungi were less abundant in the patients with IOFBs than in those without IOFBs (8.0 vs. 15.6%). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with IOFBs were mostly male and older than those without IOFBs. Gram-positive bacilli were more common and fungi were less common in patients with IOFBs than in those without IOFBs.