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Arch Ophthalmol. 1998;116:1246.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Previously we have reported on the misuse of nonophthalmic and ophthalmic drops due to packaging similarity.¹ Other reports document the inadvertent instillation of nonophthalmic drops into the eye because of bottle size or packaging similarity, including Hemoccult developer,² cyanoacrylate,³ and sodium hydroxide.⁴

Report of a Case

An 87-year-old woman underwent penetrating keratoplasty, anterior vitrectomy, and lens exchange for pseudophakic corneal edema. Six months postoperatively her medications included prednisolone acetate (Pred Forte, Allergan Inc, Irvine, Calif), four times a day, and 5% sodium chloride drops (Muro 128, Bausch & Lomb Pharaceutical Inc, Tampa, Fla), four times a day. A nurse's aide assisting with eye drops mistakenly placed an antiseptic solution, (<1% benzalkonium chloride, Mycocide NS, Woodward Laboratories Inc, Los Alamitos, Calif) into the postoperative eye resulting in immediate eye pain, redness, and tearing. This antiseptic is typically used as a topical treatment for nailbed fungus. The eye was flushed repeatedly with tap water, and the . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Comment
Corresponding author: Thomas L. Steinemann, MD, Jones Eye Institute–University of Arkansas Medical School, 4301 W Markham, Slot 523, Little Rock, AR 72205.