Effect of Systemic Cortisone and Corticotrophin (Acth) on Experimental Herpes Simplex Keratitis

IN CONTRAST with the spectacular recovery, without relapse, reported by Fitzgerald and associates1in four cases of dendritic ulcer of the cornea treated by local instillations of cortisone, Scheie, Tyner, and associates2found questionable improvement in two cases of keratitis metaherpetica, and Steffensen, Wishbow, and associates3observed subjective relief, but incomplete healing, in two cases of dendritic keratitis. Leopold, Purnell, and co-workers4treated four patients with dendritic keratitis by daily subconjunctival injections of cortisone and obtained partial improvement in three. In experimental herpes simplex keratitis in the rabbit, Hallett, Leopold, and associates5found no beneficial effect from treatment with cortisone drops and ointment, and actually a deleterious effect from subconjunctival injection of cortisone. Steffensen and colleagues3stated that diseases of viral etiology in general have been unresponsive to corticotrophin (ACTH) and cortisone. This observation is further borne out by the failure of Loosli and