J Korean Ophthalmol Soc.  1988 Apr;29(2):411-418.

Change of Normal Bacterial Flora in Conjunctiva: According to Age-related Psychosocial Activity

• Rhee JK
• Cho YA
• Jung HR

Abstract

Eyes as an exposed organ of human body are easily contaminated from environment including air and water and by bacteria on skin of hands and eyelids. Recently the contamination of environment is increasing and new generations of antibiotics are introduced and moreover their abuse is also serious, especially in Korea. All those factors seem to make the normal flora of conjunctiva change. It is true that psychosocial activity and environment change according to age. Therefore the authors investigated bacterial flora of the eye on 408 eyes of 408 Koreans without any inflammations. They were subdivided into eight groups by difference of psychosocial behaviour. In this study overall positive culture rate was 37.5% and total 168 isolates and 19 species were cultured. Major organisms were Staphylococcus epidermidis(42.8%), Staphylococcus aureus(19.0%) and Diphtheroid(14.8%). The rate of positive culture was 26.5% in the neonatal period, 53.3% in the infany, 42.7% in the preschool period, 48.5% in the late childhood, 32.7% in the adolescence, 27.1% in the adulthood, 43.6% in the middle age, and 41.9% in the old age. The highest rate of positive culture was 53.3% of the infancy and the lowest rate 26.5% of the neonatal period. It is interest that this study revealed the difference between male and female. The mean of positive culture rate was similar: 35.5% in male and 39.5% in fernale. The positive culture rate in female was much higher in the preschool period, the late childhood and the old age than in other periods; much lower in the adolescence and the adulthood. There was no significant difference in positive culture rate of each period in male, except the lowest rate in neonatal period and the highest rate in the infancy. The big difference of positive culture between male and female was shown in the late childhood and the adulthood. In the late childhood, female has much higher rate than male and much lower rate in the adulthood. As the result of this study, the authors concluded that normal flora of bacteria in conjunctiva was affected by psychosocial activity and environment according to age.

MeSH Terms

Adolescent
Anti-Bacterial Agents
Bacteria
Conjunctiva*
Eyelids
Family Characteristics
Female
Hand
Human Body
Humans
Inflammation
Korea
Male
Middle Aged
Skin
Staphylococcus
Anti-Bacterial Agents