Impact of Perioperative Management on Ocular Microbiota Composition and Diversity: A Study of Intravitreal Injection Patients with 16S rRNA Sequencing

The ocular microbiota, which includes both commensal and pathogenic microorganisms, is constantly exposed to the ocular surface. It has recently become increasingly acknowledged that the ocular microbiota plays a vital role in maintaining eye health and that interventions, including the use of drugs on the surface of the eye, can potentially disrupt the equilibrium of microorganisms within the eye. One area that has received relatively little attention in the literature is the potential effect of these interventions on the microbiota within the vitreous. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of intravitreal injections on the ocular microbiota of patients, specifically examining changes in the composition and relative abundance of ocular microbes as a result of this treatment.

In this study, two groups of patients were analyzed. Group A included 19 individuals who had not received intravitreal injections or undergone perioperative management. Group B, on the other hand, consisted of 22 patients who had received one, two, or more two treatments. The microbial samples collected from the ocular surface of these patients were subjected to 16S rRNA sequencing using the HiSeq 2500 platform. Further analysis of the alpha/beta diversity and clustering of operating taxonomic units (OTUs) was carried out.

Our results show a significant difference in beta diversity was observed between group A (15 patients without intravitreal injections or perioperative management) and group B (patients with at least one, twice, or more than twice treatment) with a P value of 0.014. It was found that both the composition and relative abundance of cells were impacted by perioperative management in the lead-up to intravitreal injection. Additionally, a greater diversity of Gram-negative bacteria was observed and the most significant groups of microbiotas were found to be phyla and genera.

In conclusion, our study found that perioperative management has a significant impact on the ocular microbiota, altering its composition and disrupting its balance. Therefore, it is important for clinicians to carefully consider perioperative management prior to administering intravitreal injections.