Susceptibility of Acanthamoeba to cryotherapeutic method

D. M. Meisler, I. H. Ludwig, I. Rutherford, F. E. Bican, R. H. Langston and G. S. Visvesvara

Acanthamoeba keratitis is becoming an increasingly well-known clinical entity. The Acanthamoeba species in their encysted state are resistant to antimicrobial agents, resulting in corneal infections that are refractory to medical therapy. Corneal cryotherapy has been used to treat Acanthamoeba keratitis with varying and equivocal success. We subjected trophozoites and cysts of two species of Acanthamoeba recovered from corneal infections to trials of in vitro freeze-thaw-refreeze cryotherapeutic methods. The trophozoites of both species were killed in all trials. However, the cysts of both species survived all trials. Cryotherapy may not be an effective means to eliminate Acanthamoeba cysts from the cornea.