A case of herpetic keratitis after cataract surgery

We report a case of a postoperative herpetic keratit in a patient who underwent uncomplicated cataract surgery. a 70-year-old woman underwent a phacoemulsification and intraocular lens implantation in her left eye. medical history was significant for previous renal transplantation, requiring oral immunosuppressive medications. on postoperative day one, her examination was normal and topical steroid treatment was initiated to the patient. on postoperative day 5, examination revealed a central corneal dentritic lesion. topical steroid therapy discontinued and the patient was initiated oral acyclovir and topical acyclovir 5 times a day. by the day 10, the dendrites were resolved and healed without sequelae after acyclovir treatment. as a result, herpes simplex virus (hsv) keratitis is a rare complication after cataract surgery. ophthalmologists should be aware of the possibility of developing postoperative herpetic epithelial keratitis particularly in patients taking an immune suppressive therapy due to the surgery trauma.