A 62-year-old farmer presents with a 4-day history of a painful red eye. Slit-lamp examination shows a dense central corneal ulcer with sharply defined margins and a 2 mm sterile-looking hypopyon. Which organism is classically associated with this presentation?
- A Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- B Aspergillus fumigatus
- C Streptococcus pneumoniae ✓
- D Staphylococcus epidermidis
Correct answer: C. Streptococcus pneumoniae
Explanation
The pneumococcus is the classical cause of hypopyon corneal ulcer: a central ulcer with defined edges and a sterile hypopyon, typically in an elderly or debilitated patient after minor trauma. Pseudomonas produces a rapidly suppurating, spreading ulcer with mucopurulent discharge rather than a discrete ulcer with sharp borders.
Reference: Parsons' Diseases of the Eye, 23rd ed.
High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP
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